Imbe Hidasuki Tokkuri

Mitsuru Isezaki is one of the potters who inherited the Bizen ware style redeveloped by Toyo Kaneshige.
His pottery style is simple and unadorned, showcasing the natural quality of the clay.
He fired his Hidasuki pieces in a Noborigama climbing kiln, without the use of electric or gas kilns.
This tokkuri (sake bottle) was fired approximately 15 years ago.
Although this tokkuri is a Noborigama-fired Hidasuki, it features a bright scarlet hue and a beautiful white clay base.
I feel that works fired in a Noborigama kiln like this are rare, as they often result in charcoal-gray clay and dark red Hidasuki markings.
It is an unused piece that has been carefully stored by a collector.

He was born in Bizen City, Okayama Prefecture, in 1934.
He was recognized as an Important Intangible Cultural Asset by the prefecture in 1998.
He passed away in 2011.