Shigaraki tea bowl

This Shigaraki tea bowl is the work of Masashiro Aiga, an artist who creates works that are unwaveringly direct and substantial. Featuring a dignified craftsmanship typical of Aiga, whose passion lies in the study of ancient ceramics such as Old Bizen, this tea bowl was selected for the 2012 Exhibition of Tea Ceremony Forms. The soft, caramel-like color of the clay body possesses a rustic charm characteristic of Shigaraki, distinct from that of Bizen. While the cylindrical form is actually wider than it is tall, its sweeping design gives it a vertical appearance that seems to draw you in when you peer inside. When in use, the beautiful clay body will accentuate the green of the matcha, creating a superlative landscape. Signed wooden box (shiho-san style)
Diameter 12.3cm × 12.2cm × Height 11.3cm Masashiro Aiga graduated from the Okayama Prefectural Bizen Pottery Center in 1997. He built a fully subterranean anagama kiln in Sabu in 2003, followed by a second, semi-subterranean anagama kiln in 2004, and continues to devote himself to his craft.