White glaze ridge line sake cup Yu Okada
White glaze ridge line sake cup Yu Okada
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Width: 9.3cm Height: 4.3cm
White glaze ridgeline sake cup
-- Created by Masaru Okada --
Work summary
This is a white-glazed sake cup made by Okada Masaru, a potter at Uji Tanzan in Kyoto. An arched ridge runs across the inside of the cup, giving a sense of tension to the tranquility of the white porcelain. The contrast between the slightly flattened bowl shape and the tall, black cylindrical foot creates an ambitious piece that exudes an abstract modernist feel.
Glaze and technique
White glaze blend : A semi-porcelain base made primarily of feldspar is coated with a milky glaze that has been given a slightly warmth by oxidation firing, aiming for a soft tone that is not too pure white.
Ridge carving : After shaping on the potter's wheel, the leather is carved into the shape in one go using a single-edged knife while it is still hard, and a thin layer of glaze is applied to the edges to accentuate the sharpness of the lines.
Black cosmetic base : Only the base is coated with cosmetic clay containing a lot of iron, and the iron is turned black by adjusting the oxidation and reduction in the kiln using a two-phase firing process. This reduces the difference in the expansion coefficient between the clay and the glaze, and suppresses distortion even when the piece is thin.
Historical and cultural background
White porcelain and white-glazed sake vessels have been associated with the symbols of "tranquility" and "purity" in modern Japanese ceramics, based on the lineage of the blue-and-white porcelain of the Ming Dynasty and the white porcelain of the Yi Dynasty in Jingdezhen, China. By applying the "control of color and light" he has cultivated in his research into the kiln-changing effects of Tenmoku glaze to white glaze, Okada Masaru has embodied a "white that harbors warmth" rather than simply white. Furthermore, by inserting the minimalist element of a "ridgeline," he has captured the philosophy of the "single line" in Zen painting - the universe of white space - in the microcosm of a sake cup.
Aesthetic intent and spirituality
The ridges are "cross sections of blank space," and when light hits them they are enveloped in shadow; when sake is poured, the lines melt into the liquid and disappear, only to reappear as the drink is consumed. This repetition suggests the cycle of "being and nothingness," evoking the introspective moments associated with Zen koans.
A single ridgeline cuts diagonally through the tranquil white plane. This sake cup symbolizes the "aesthetics of white space" and "monochrome dialogue" presented by Masaru Okada. Hold it in your palm and watch the shadow melt into the sake's surface, enjoying the dance of light and shadow that changes with the passage of time.
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