Bizen Sake Cup

This is a new Bizen sake cup, fresh from the kiln of Takashi Soga, who challenges the beauty of antiquity by recreating the same environment in which ancient Bizen ware was fired. To replicate the style of the ancient Bizen period, he avoids the use of modern refractory bricks, resulting in a kiln that defies all modern common sense regarding thermal efficiency. Because of this, the cup exhibits an exquisite "earthiness" that transcends modern aesthetics and approaches the quality of ancient Bizen. Mr. Soga continues to take on new challenges by changing his firing method for every kiln load, and this particular piece is a highly distinctive example of the "full Enoki-hada" (hackberry bark texture) from this latest firing. It features a kiln transformation (yohen) that appeared for the first time from this kiln: a charcoal-like, matte black-gray "kase-goma" (dry ash glaze) covers almost the entire sake cup, excluding parts of the interior and the foot. The base clay shows the vivid, hard-fired scarlet color characteristic of this firing, and where the surface has peeled off through handling, the scarlet is exposed, creating a beautiful contrast between red and black. The foot is left exposed like "tsuchimise" (exposed clay), making it appear as if it is wrapped in a black "Enoki-hada" of charcoal color, like a Bizen-style slip decoration. Signed wooden box to follow at a later date (please allow some time for shipping)
Diameter 6.4cm × Diameter 6.3cm × Height 5.6cm Takashi Soga was born in Tokyo in 1984. He studied under Jun Isezaki in 2009 and built his own kiln in Kuguigai, Bizen City, in 2012. He began his independent career as a ceramic artist in 2013.