Nezumi Shino Kofuku Tea Bowl by Suzuki Tomio

Description

Greatly esteemed by tea ceremony practitioners for centuries, shino-yaki was first fired during the Momoyama era (1568-1603) at kilns in Minō - central Japan.  Glazed with a simple mixture of mostly feldspar and water, shino is renowned for its textured surface of pinholes and crackles that forms while cooling in the kiln.  As a coloring agent, potters add a rare iron-rich sediment, called onita, which is found in certain riverbeds around the region.

This kofuku tea bowl by Suzuki Tomio is done in nezumi (literally "mouse") shino, as denoted by its mostly soft gray color.  Hints of rust red from the onita-rich underglaze peer through the holes in its citrus skin surface, while the face of the bowl is accented with a geometrically formed Zen circle.

Kofuku tea bowls are made especially for outdoor tea parties.  Their smaller size makes them easier to tote around, usually in a nodate basket containing all the necessary tea utensils.  Considered to be more daily ware, kofuku bowls lack the strict formality associated with bowls for chanoyu tea ceremony.

Suzuki Tomio's shino pottery is held in private collections around the world and, in 2011, was acquired by the Philadelphia Museum of Art for display in their East Asian Art collection.

A wooden presentation box will be custom made to order and signed by the artist.  Delivery time for this item is 2 weeks.

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