Bizen ash-covered black sake cup

This is a Bizen sake cup by the popular young artist Yoshiteru Koriki, a former apprentice of the master Sozan Kaneshige. This particular sake cup is significantly larger than Koriki's standard size, holding approximately 120ml when filled to the brim. In keeping with the scale of the piece, the firing is a bold "full ash-covered" (so-haikaburi) style; the entire vessel was completely buried in ash, resulting in a black kiln-change effect that the artist has named "Ash-Covered Black." When wet, the black surface seems to come to life instantly, as if a mountainside with bubbling spring water had been carved out and captured in the work. Signed paulownia box (shiho-zan) included
Diameter 7.9cm × Diameter 7.7cm × Height 6.0cm Yoshiteru Koriki was born in Ako City, Hyogo Prefecture. Influenced by his father, who loved pottery, he set his heart on the path of ceramic art. After graduating from high school in 1989, he apprenticed under the master potters Sozan Kaneshige and his son Yuho to learn the craft. After seven years of training, he built a climbing kiln in Shizutani, Bizen City, and struck out on his own in 1996, achieving success with his first kiln firing the following year. He held his first solo exhibition in Tokyo in 2000 and has held solo exhibitions every year since. In 1999, his work was selected for the "Kita no Kashiki" (Tea Sweets Vessel) Exhibition, and in 2002, he was selected for the "Chanoyu no Zokei" (Forms of Tea Ceremony) Exhibition for the first time.