{"product_id":"p7438","title":"Bizen Yohen Blue Sake Cup","description":"Born in Imbe and having loved Bizen ware since childhood, Takashi Baba finds his greatest joy in life through creating works and firing kilns. This is a newly fired \"Bizen Yohen Ao\" (kiln-transmuted blue) guinomi (sake cup) fresh from his kiln.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\nThis is his latest work, just removed from the kiln in August 2024.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\nA piece from the Yohen Ao (Kiln-Transmuted Blue) series, this work evolves Mr. Baba's signature black Bizen (created using slip) by transforming portions of the black surface into a vibrant cobalt blue.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\nWhile the intense cobalt blue coloration, dubbed \"Yohen Ao,\" is the most striking feature, the other black areas also exhibit a unique, gunmetal-like sheen resulting from the intense firing process.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\nThe flowing sesame glaze (goma) that dripped toward the rim due to the piece being fired upside down is truly fascinating. The calm, slightly greenish-toned sesame glaze—a hallmark of Mr. Baba's kilns—has settled only around the foot, creating an effect reminiscent of a patchwork quilt.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\nThe modern spatula-carved finish and the cut foot (wari-kodai), characteristic of Mr. Baba’s background in sculpture, are also compelling, adding further depth and shadow to the piece, which is colored in black and blue.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\nWith its vibrant blue, cool black, and modern form working in harmony, this is a work you will never forget once you have seen it.\n\nSigned wooden box (shiho-san)\u003cbr\u003e\nDiameter 6.9cm x 6.9cm x Height 5.4cm\n\nTakashi Baba was born in 1983 as the eldest son of Bizen ware artist Shosuke Baba.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\nDetermined to become a potter from a young age, he chose to study sculpture in university to broaden the scope of his ceramic practice.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\nAfter graduating from the Tokyo University of the Arts with a degree in sculpture in 2006, he further refined his skills at the Kyoto Municipal Institute of Industrial Technology and Culture.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\nHe became independent in 2007 and held his first solo exhibition.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\nHe is currently active mainly through solo exhibitions at department stores.","brand":"馬場隆志","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46618171670625,"sku":"7438","price":28600.0,"currency_code":"JPY","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0654\/9916\/8865\/files\/7438.jpg?v=1790232711","url":"https:\/\/tourakuen.myshopify.com\/en\/products\/p7438","provider":"川口陶楽苑","version":"1.0","type":"link"}