Bizen Yusai Kuro Guinomi

This is a brand new Bizen "Yusai-Kuro" (Heroic Black) sake cup, just out of the kiln by Intangible Cultural Property holder Yuichi Yamamoto, son of the legendary master craftsman Toshu Yamamoto. This is the first sake cup created in the Yusai-Kuro series, achieved by firing to the limit to produce a magnificent black that appears as if India ink is seeping from the surface. Master Yuichi himself describes them as rare, with only a few pieces emerging from every hundred; the black, achieved without the use of slip, embodies both the profound, mysterious flavor typical of Bizen and the unique intrigue of the color black. The *goma* (ash glaze) has also been affected by the intense firing, creating a dizzying gradation of green, white, and gold over a base of black, vitreous kiln-change. The form, too, has been influenced by the intense heat; what began as a nearly perfect, symmetrical circle—characteristic of Yamamoto Bizen—has been slowly distorted by the heat, a fascinating testament to the theme of Yamamoto Bizen: transcending the potter's wheel to confront the flame. Signed wooden box (shiho-zan) included
Diameter 6.5cm × Diameter 6.4cm × Height 5.8cm Master Yuichi Yamamoto is the eldest son of Living National Treasure Toshu Yamamoto and began his path in ceramics under his father in 1959. In 1968, he became the first to introduce gas kilns to Bizen ware. With an inquisitive mind and a love for science, he researched methods to turn *hidasuki* (fire-cord patterns)—a technique often dependent on chance—into intentional designs. He devised the "Himon" and "Hisai" techniques of artificial *hidasuki*, using extract boiled down from rice straw like paint to draw flowers and patterns on the clay body. He produces a wide range of works including vases, tea utensils, jars, and large bowls. He became a full member of the Japan Kōgeikai in 1967. In 1995, he published an introductory book for creators titled "Techniques of Bizen Ware: Tradition and Creation." In 1996, he won the Tabe Museum Grand Prize at the Exhibition of Tea Ceremony Forms, and in the same year, he was designated as a holder of an Okayama Prefecture Important Intangible Cultural Property.
Awards: Numerous awards including the Kaneshige Toyo Award, Okayama Prefecture Cultural Encouragement Award, Sanyo Shimbun Award, Medal with Dark Blue Ribbon, Okayama Nichinichi Shimbun Art and Culture Merit Award, and the Tea Ceremony Forms Exhibition Grand Prize / Prefectural Exhibition Juror
Affiliations: Japan Kōgeikai, Bizen-yaki Toshinkai, Bigeikai, Gengakai, Kunpukai