Bizen sake cup

This is a Bizen sake cup by Yoshiteru Kōriki, a popular young artist and former apprentice to the master Sozan Kaneshige. The clay, with its vivid, persimmon-like orange hue, features striking variations, making it ideal for a sake cup. Combined with the dry, wood-ash glaze reminiscent of withered trees, the piece seems to distill the growth and transformation of nature into a compact form. Though slightly large, it fits perfectly in the hand, and the unique, rhythmic carving of the foot suggests it will be a pleasure to use. Signed wooden box (shiho-zan)
Diameter 7.4cm × Diameter 7.2cm × Height 4.9cm Yoshiteru Kōriki was born in Akō, Hyogo Prefecture. Influenced by his father, a pottery enthusiast, he aspired to become a ceramic artist. After graduating from high school in 1989, he apprenticed under the master Sozan Kaneshige and his son Yuho Kaneshige to learn the craft. Following seven years of training, he built a climbing kiln in Shizutani, Bizen City, and established his independence in 1996, successfully firing his first kiln the following year. He held his first solo exhibition in Tokyo in 2000 and has held annual exhibitions since. In 1999, his work was selected for the "Sweets Containers of the North" exhibition, and in 2002, he was first selected for the "Chanoyu Form" exhibition.