Black Bizen tea bowl

This is a new black Bizen tea bowl by Takashi Baba, an artist born in Imbe who has loved Bizen ware since childhood and finds his life's joy in creating works and firing kilns. Rather than attempting to win over the viewer with design, he has confronted the art of tea pottery head-on with a magnificent, orthodox "badarai" (horse basin) shape. It is a highly impressive, authentic piece that speaks to an artist who has silently and diligently honed his craft solely for tea ceramics. While maintaining a thin and lightweight build to preserve the essence of the badarai form, the shaping remains powerful and grounded, and the smooth black slip accentuates the color of the matcha while offering a gentle texture; above all, the generous amount of "goma" (sesame glaze) draped over both the interior and exterior creates a magnificent landscape. The hue of the black slip lightens slightly at the waist and foot due to the intensity of the flames and the application of the slip, giving it a deep, evocative quality that resembles exposed clay.

"Takashi Baba Special Feature" Signed wooden box to be provided at a later date (please allow some time for delivery)
Diameter 12.8cm x 12.7cm x Height 7.2cm Takashi Baba was born in 1983 as the eldest son of Bizen ceramic artist Shosuke Baba. Considering a future as a ceramic artist from a young age, he chose to study sculpture in university to broaden his artistic scope. After graduating from the Tokyo University of the Arts Department of Sculpture in 2006, he trained at the Kyoto Municipal Institute of Industrial Technology and Culture. He became independent in 2007 and held his first solo exhibition. He is currently active primarily through solo exhibitions at department stores.