New Year Special Exhibition: Bizen Connections Series, Part 1: Michiaki and Tsuyoshi Kaneshige - A Father and Son's Sake Table

Hello everyone, how are you all doing?
We still have some warm days, so snow has yet to settle here in Bizen.
I am not a fan of the cold, so I am grateful for that, though the beauty of a snow-covered landscape is hard to resist.
This time of year is prone to colds, so here at our shop, ginger tea has become popular to help prevent them.
It is also recommended for throats that tend to get dry and irritated.
Please everyone, be sure to take good care of your health.

Now, at Kawaguchi Tourakuen, we are pleased to announce our second blog exhibition as a New Year project.
Taking inspiration from the fortune slips (omikuji) customary this time of year, we have titled it the "Bizen En (Connection) Exhibition,"
with the idea of introducing pairings based on blood relations or mentor-disciple connections.
It is also a wish for more wonderful encounters with people and works this year.

The concept of "en" (connection/fate) is one that is always featured on fortune slips.
It is a type of religious philosophy that has been rooted in Japanese life since ancient times.
There are even deities dedicated specifically to "en," and they are always in the spotlight as gods of matchmaking.

In modern Bizen, where such a diverse variety of vessels is being produced and sent out by various people,
it might be fun to try selecting pieces by pulling on those threads of connection.
I also believe there are truths that can only be seen by looking at two pieces side by side.



For our first feature, we introduce a sake set from the parent and child artists, Michiaki Sensei, Iwao Sensei, and Takeshi Sensei.
Takeshi Sensei says that Michiaki Sensei's sake bottle was likely fired in the hottest part of the kiln.
It is a work that was positioned spanning two chambers, and the difference in heat intensity between the shoulder and the base has resulted in a difference in kiln alteration (yohen) between sesame (goma) glaze and ash-covered effects.
Because it was fired while rolled on its side, it has a reddish finish in the areas where the glaze pulled away; it would be lovely to let it soak up drops of sake when you use it.

For the works by Iwao Sensei and Takeshi Sensei, we matched two low-profile sake cups.
It is interesting to compare the difference between Iwao Sensei, who avoids aiming for kiln alteration and prioritizes drawing out the inherent flavor of the clay itself, and Takeshi Sensei, who loves crusty sesame glaze and kiln alterations, and pursues the ultimate effects in his unique kiln.
The contrast is also worth noting: the modeling of Iwao Sensei, which has an image of "softness" with a relaxed and unique rhythm, versus the "strength" in the modeling of Takeshi Sensei, with his symmetrical forms and precise foot-trimming.