Bizen Sake Cup

This Bizen sake cup, fresh from the kiln of Takashi Soga, represents a challenge to the beauty of the past, created by replicating the same environment in which Old Bizen was fired. To authentically recreate the style of the Old Bizen period, he avoids the use of modern refractory bricks; consequently, the kiln is fired in a manner that defies modern common sense regarding thermal efficiency. Because of this, the cup exhibits an exquisite "earth quality" (tsuchiaji) that transcends modern aesthetics and approaches the appearance of Old Bizen. Meticulous about the quality of the clay, Soga uses high-grade rice field clay thought to have been used in Momoyama-period ceramics, resulting in a remarkable tactile quality characterized by fine texture, iron speckling, and a unique luster. The superb chocolate-colored finish is so convincing it feels as if it might melt in your hands or on your tongue, while the intensely astringent *tobigoma* (splashed sesame) and *itogoma* (thread-like sesame) glazes evoke the surface of Old Bizen ware. The robust, tea-bowl-like form is also magnificent; as you swirl sake in it, the liquid seems to mellow and become even more fragrant as it blends with the melting quality of the clay. Signed wooden box to follow (please allow some time for delivery).
Diameter 6.7cm × Diameter 6.6cm × Height 5.2cm Takashi Soga was born in Tokyo in 1984. He studied under Jun Isezaki in 2009 and built his kiln in Kukui, Bizen City, in 2012. He became independent and began his pottery career in 2013.