Bizen black rice bowl

This is a Bizen black rice bowl by Masao Akitani, an artist who trained under Living National Treasure Jun Isezaki and creates works overflowing with his own unique originality within a new spirit. This piece is a fusion of the innovative spirit cultivated under Living National Treasure Jun Isezaki and the artist's own desire, as a pottery enthusiast himself, to pursue ease of use. While aiming for a novel black rice bowl unlike anything seen before, he has intentionally focused on warm *hidasuki* (fire-cord) and *goma* (sesame glaze) markings as the main features rather than a cold black, ensuring the bowl is pleasant to use. The generously applied *goma* has kiln-transformed into a pale blue, creating a rich and varied landscape that is almost too magnificent for a simple rice bowl. Paper box
Diameter 12.2cm x 12.2cm x Height 6.3cm Masao Akitani was born in Saitama in 1968. He apprenticed under Living National Treasure Jun Isezaki starting in 1998, and after ten years of training, he built his own kiln in Bizen and became independent in 2008. He held his first kiln firing in 2009. His works have been selected for the Tanabe Museum of Art "The Art of Tea" exhibition and the Japan Kōgei Association Chūgoku Branch exhibition, and he has received awards including the Okayama Prefectural Art Exhibition Prize and the Encouragement Award.