Kuro Kezuri Chawan

This black tea bowl is the work of Koichiro Isezaki, the eldest son of Living National Treasure Jun Isezaki, who is breathing new life into the world of Bizen ware with his extraordinary sense of style and masterful sculptural ability. Departing from his previous "kurinuki" (hollowed-out) technique, he has shifted the vector of his force, creating a form born from shaving the clay inward. The shape, which resembles a gear when viewed from above, has been molded using hard clay to firmly maintain its sharp edges. The firing is intense, and the generous application of "goma" (ash glaze) reveals a variety of expressions on each carved facet. Signed wooden box (shiho-san)
Diameter 13.8cm × Diameter 12.5cm × Height 10.6cm Koichiro Isezaki was born the eldest son of Living National Treasure Jun Isezaki. The Isezaki family is a prestigious line of Bizen ware potters; his grandfather was the Intangible Cultural Property holder Yozan Isezaki, and his uncle was the Intangible Cultural Property holder Mitsuru Isezaki, and Koichiro himself aspired to pottery from an early age. After graduating from the Department of Sculpture at Tokyo Zokei University in 1994, he studied abroad in the United States. He trained under New York City-based ceramic artist Jeff Shapiro for approximately two years, significantly broadening his perspective on art and ceramics. After returning to Japan in 2000, he trained under the guidance of his father alongside his father's apprentices. In 2002, he submitted work to the Tanabe Art Museum Tea Ceremony Exhibition for the first time and was selected.