Bizen ware travel-pillow flower vase

This is an exquisite Bizen ware flower vase, an earlier work by Kosuke Kaneshige, the leader of the Kaneshige school and son of the legendary reviver of Bizen ware and Living National Treasure, Toyo Kaneshige. This piece was created around the time Kosuke Kaneshige built his climbing kiln in Katō, circa 1990. It features a stunning, literally superlative landscape where a deep, dark ash-covered kiln transformation meets the soft, orange-hued texture of the clay. Beyond the magnificent kiln-fired effects, the "tabimakura" (travel pillow) form is masterfully crafted, with a graceful, rounded silhouette that accentuates the softness of the scarlet-tinged clay. The elegant, high-quality orange clay is so beautiful that it almost begs to be rubbed with sake. (*Please note that there is some minor staining due to age, which does not affect its use.) Signed wooden box (shiho-san)
Diameter 15.0cm x Diameter 14.6cm x Height 22.5cm Kosuke Kaneshige is the third son of Living National Treasure Toyo Kaneshige. He graduated from the Sculpture Department of Tokyo University of the Arts in 1968 and completed his graduate studies in sculpture there in 1970. He began presenting ceramic works in 1975, and after serving as a lecturer at Tokai University, he returned home in 1977. He built his own climbing kiln in 1982. He produces objects, tea utensils, vases, tableware, and sake vessels. In 1991, he created the ceramic mural "Light and Wind" for the Yasuda Fire and Marine Insurance building in Okayama. He received the Japan Ceramic Society Award in 1994. In 1997, his work was exhibited at the Bizen Ware Paris Exhibition. He holds solo exhibitions in Tokyo, Osaka, and other locations. In 2012, he was designated as an Okayama Prefecture Intangible Cultural Property holder.