Bizen sake cup

This Bizen sake cup is by Takashi Soga, who challenges the beauty of antiquity by recreating the same environment in which Old Bizen was fired. To replicate the style of the Old Bizen period, he eschews the use of firebricks and other modern materials, firing his pieces in a kiln where the internal thermal efficiency defies all modern conventions. As a result, the work displays an exquisite earthen texture that transcends contemporary aesthetics and approaches that of Old Bizen itself. While the straw for the *hidasuki* (fire-cord) markings was wrapped around the piece, it was fired exposed within the kiln, resulting in a combination of rich, dark chocolate-like *hidasuki* and a withered texture. The interior of the cup also possesses a remarkably austere earthen quality, giving it an air of ancient pedigree despite being a new creation. Signed wooden box (shōhō-zan)
Diameter 7.1cm × Diameter 7.0cm × Height 5.6cm Takashi Soga was born in Tokyo in 1984. He apprenticed under Jun Isezaki in 2009 and built his own kiln in Kukui, Bizen City, in 2012. He became independent and began his career as a ceramic artist in 2013.