Bizen ware sake bottle (imo-tokkuri)

This Bizen *imo-tokkuri* (potato-shaped sake bottle) is the work of Takashi Soga, who challenges the aesthetics of antiquity by recreating the same environment in which ancient Bizen ware was fired. Without the use of any machinery such as electric pottery wheels or thermometers, the piece was fired in a primitive kiln using only the artist's own empirical knowledge. It is a sake bottle with a deep, earthy *hiwada-iro* (cypress-bark color) texture, accented by a rich, viscous, azuki-bean-colored *hidasuki* (fire-cord) pattern. True to his commitment to the same production methods used for ancient Bizen ware, Soga-sensei constructed the bottle in sections from the shoulder up, resulting in a spout with a refined, traditional character. Includes signed wooden box (with four-way locking lid).
Rim 3.8cm × Body Diameter 9.7cm × Body Diameter 9.6cm × Height 14.5cm. Capacity: Approx. 500cc Takashi Soga was born in Tokyo in 1984. He studied under Jun Isezaki in 2009 and built his own kiln in Kukui, Bizen City, in 2012. He became independent and began his career as a ceramic artist in 2013.