Bizen Sake Cup

This is a newly kiln-fired Bizen sake cup by Masashiro Aiga, an artist who creates works that are uncompromisingly direct and possess great integrity. Among the many Bizen ware artists, Masashiro Aiga is surely the only one who has mastered the *haikaburi* (ash-covered) *yohen* (kiln change) effect to this degree. The incomparable firing has given the ash-covered surface a texture like a rocky reef, and when combined with a sleek, lustrous quality, it evokes the scenery of exploring a coastal cave. The interior features Aiga's signature *botamochi* (peony rice cake) pattern, and when the deep purple surface, fired to perfection, is moistened with sake, it displays a rich, mellow shimmer that makes one imagine the color of the clay itself is seeping into the liquor. Signed wooden box to follow (please allow some time for shipping).
Diameter 8.3cm × Diameter 8.0cm × Height 5.2cm Masashiro Aiga graduated from the Okayama Prefectural Bizen Pottery Center in 1997. In 2003, he built a fully underground *anagama* kiln in Samukaze. The following year, in 2004, he built a second semi-underground *anagama* kiln, where he continues his dedicated pursuit of pottery.