Sunrise and early morning 🌅
From the lakeside overlooking Mt.Fuji 📸
When I see Mt.Fuji, I have the joy and pride of being Japanese. When do you feel glad to be born in your country?☺️
Typical glazes for Mashiko ware are black and celadon with greenish hues, rice-bran glaze and candy glaze with brownish hues, transparent white glaze, and persimmon-colored glaze that is almost reddish brown... There are many shades of glazes with a calming effect 🎨🧡
Ideal weather for cherry blossom viewing☺️🌸
Cherry blossoms make me feel glad to be born in Japan. Of course, I love other countries as well!
Have a nice day everyone😊
At Ueno park📸
Masu Minakawa (1874-1960), a Mashiko legend, was a ceramic painter. She painted from the age of 15 to around 81, and is said to have painted as many as 700 clay teapots in a single day! It is said that she painted 4 to 7 million pieces of pottery during her lifetime!! 😳👏
A terrarium is a transparent container in which you can create your own "world". It has a relaxing effect, as if you are in a natural environment such as a mountain or a forest. Mashiko ware, made from Mashiko clay, has a similar healing effect😌🍀🧡
I experienced prayer and exorcism at the Samukawa Shrine.
In Japan there are the Japanese zodiac signs called "Eto". There are twelve animals and each is allocated for one year. This year's animal is... a dragon!🐉🔥 Can you see a powerful dragon in the New Year's decorations?😏
I wanted to visit St. Ives once to see the slipware. So I did some research, and to my surprise, I found that there is a place called "Gallery St. Ives" in Japan! Yes, of course, I went there! 😁🌟✨🇬🇧
Toshihiko Kiln is located in Tamba city in Hyogo prefecture, one of the six oldest pottery production centers in Japan with a history of over 850 years. Using traditional techniques such as "Shinogi", Toshihiko and his son are produce vessels for daily use using Tamba clay.
It seems that Mashiko became a major pottery production area largely due to clay teapots. This is because many disposable clay teapots were used for drinking tea on the railroad. Seems to have been painted with station names or flowers.
🚃💨
This is Okinawan pottery "Yachimun". Okinawa is the southernmost prefecture of Japan, consisting of 160 islands. Aren't the bright colors and patterns lovely?☺️ It seems to express the power, cheerfulness, and brightness of Okinawa's nature. 🌊🌿✨
Kimano Pottery is made by Mr. and Mrs. Shinya and Aya Kima. They studied pottery making at the Yukutaya kiln in Okinawa before starting to make pottery in Mashiko. Using Mashiko's raw materials, they create ceramics based on the Okinawan pottery technique they were trained in🏝
Spring is slowly coming from the south☺️🌼🌷✨
View of Mt. Kaimondake called "Satsuma-Fuji" meaning Mt.Fuji of Kagoshima.
Take care of yourself as the weather is still cold!
Picture from above the top of Mt.Fuji 📸
On a plane bound for the Kyushu region, the southwestern island comprising the Japanese archipelago.
What kind of potteries are there in Kyushu?☺️💗♫
Works by Yasumi Kobo, Shigaraki City, Shiga Prefecture. The husband Hayato makes the wares and his wife Maki paints the picture. Familiar nature motifs are painted on the pure white base made so that the dishes are in their most beautiful state when they are served in them🍀🐦🤍
Hasami ware, that is characterized by the beauty of its white porcelain and the delicate indigo blue painting on the porcelain. Traditional colors are nice too💙🤍
On the other hand, Black Satsuma ware, commonly called "black goods," has been loved as a daily life vessel for the common people. With a jet-black luster, this pottery has a simple and sturdy warmth.
Both are "Satsuma ware" but they are so different!!😳 Both are lovely 🫶🤍🖤
White-satsuma ware, commonly called "white goods", was once a purveyor to the lord of a feudal domain and was never seen by the general public. The ivory surface is pierced with fine cracks, and is decorated with delicate and gorgeous opaque color and gold overglaze enamels😌✨
Cheers!🍶
-Soft roe with citrus based soy sauce
-Tofu with some bonito flakes and some seaweed
-Okonomiyaki, a Japanese savoury pancake 🤤🧡
Perhaps the okonomiyaki "pattern" looks like the slipware pattern?! 🤣🤣 Look!👇
Works of Hara Pottery Studio. It was established in 1975 by Haras in Kasama adjacent to Mashiko. Using clay from Kasama as a base, they put on white makeup, and paint seasonal flowers and plants using traditional iron, asbolite, and new paints. The gentle colors are so lovely😊🌸
I found works by Jang Hoon Sung, a potter in Icheon, South Korea! He uses traditional Korean glazes to make tea ceremony utensils and everyday porcelain. The patterns on the wares and the various shapes such as fans, are interesting! The patterns look like Hangul letters?🤔💕
Tempura Soba with fried prawns and vegetables🤤🍜
It is customary for japanese to eat soba on New Year's Eve to break off bad luck and hardship, as it is easier to cut than other noodles and to pray for longevity in honor of the long soba noodles!
I'll eat soba again next week😉
I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! 🤗🎄🎅❤✨
Some dishes from our Christmas dinner, and the ceramic dishes that were made in Vietri sul Mare, Italy! and the illumination of Tokyo.
Nice dishes make me feel much happier. I would love to visit the ceramic city in Italy!🥰
The potters of Daiseigama kiln say that firing in a climbing kiln makes a lot of loss. Some wares are fired raw, some are over-fired, the walls of the kiln are coming down and ruins some... Still, they use a climbing kiln because the finished wares are so much more interesting.
Kasama, adjacent to Mashiko, is a chestnut producing area. This is a bakery with a stone oven. They have a variety of breads such as chestnut danishes, chestnut and red bean buns, etc.... The danish, it was delicious ☺️
There was also a lot of slipware by Clive Bowen-san, Douglas Fitch-san and Hannah McAndrew-san on display at Gallery St. Ives! Being able to actually touch them is truly a rare experience! 🤩🌟
@douglasfitch1
@hannahmcandrew
Shugetsu Kiln is one of the few kilns in Kagoshima prefecture that specializes in manufacturing "white" Satsuma wares. I met Akio Nishida, a traditional craftsman! His son makes the ceramics, and Akio applies the designs one by one on the surface of the glazed and fired wares😍🏵
Imari ware is porcelain made in Imari City, Saga Prefecture. It is characterized by its fine, smooth texture and the vivid colors of indigo and red dyed on white porcelain. Although it looks thin and delicate, it is highly durable because it is made from ceramic stone.
💙❤🤍
These are works from Shussai kiln, where my favorite potter, Ai Takahashi, was trained. The kiln was established by five young men in 1947 in Izumo City, Shimane Prefecture. The handmade warmth felt in their simple shapes is very attractive 😌🧡
Ai Takahashi's works. Ms. Takahashi is a native of Shimane prefecture, born in 1994. After training at a famous kiln in Shimane, "Shussai Kiln," she moved to Mashiko. She uses Mashiko clay and traditional Mashiko glazes to create vessels designed to fit modern lifestyles.
I found works of Yoshiko Kasahara, a Mashiko ware artist, at a handicrafts store in Tokyo🥰
Can you guess what the motif of the pattern on the cups and plates is?😉✨
It is interesting to see how she is making wares!
It is indeed ceramic, but it looks like embroidery woven with gold. The entire process is done by hand, and the gold is repeatedly painted and fired. Sounds like a lot of work, doesn't it? 😳 but Hirota says it's a lot of fun. The skill of a master craftsman! 👏✨
"Shimadzu Satsuma kiriko (faceting)" is a traditional craft produced by the Satsuma clan in 1846-1877, and is today designated as a traditional craft by Kagoshima Prefecture. Colorless glass is covered with various colors of glass and cut with great precision. So beautiful 😌🥂🌟
This is a work by Mishio Suzuki of the Atelier Zum Tal. This piece is inspired by the deep Celtic forests that Ms. Suzuki encountered during her travels, having studied German at university. I love the delicate decoration and light colors☺️🌿🩷
Sakurajima island is famous for radish weighing up to 30 kilograms!!😳 The secret to this size is...the soil!🌋It contains pumice stone that flew from the volcano, which allows air and water to pass through it well. The soil is light and soft, allowing the plants to grow freely!
Taiseigama kiln is a traditional kiln that has been in existence for over 200 years and has the largest climbing kiln in Mashiko. The potter insists on firing only with woods, without gas or electricity, because the atmosphere of the flame and ashes give wares a unique taste🔥✨
Gallery St. Ives was very nice. You can actually touch the pottery and buy it here if you want. I was very, very happy to see so many Reach Pottery mugs and vessels! ☺️❤️✨
@gallery_st_ives
Satsuma wares by Saneyuki Hirota.
He produced ornamental works of art using the "Kinrande" technique, in which gold is applied on top of overglaze painting, and in which a large amount of gold is used 🤩🌟 His works are in the collection of the British Museum too🇬🇧
Shoji Hamada multiplied the Mashiko seven glazes, a traditional seven-color glaze originally used in Mashiko, to enable expression in a greater number of colors 🎨✨
Leach Pottery was opened in St. Ives in 1920 by Bernard Leach and Shoji Hamada. The Leach Pottery was the first in the West to have a Japanese-style climbing kiln, and the two men devoted themselves to the study and recreation of English slipware.
Works by Sayadowada Kiln. Made with traditional Mashiko materials and methods, Sayadowada Kiln's wares are molded on a kick wheel, giving them a warm, nostalgic atmosphere. While carrying on the tradition, the potters create modern Mashiko pottery that fits in with modern life.
I did "Hatsumoude", the first shrine visit of the New Year. I gave thanks for a safe and successful last year and prayed for a healthy year ahead..🙏🌟
I took a fortune slip and it said "Great Fortune"! I hope this will be a year of laughter with you and with those I love 🤗🧡
Works by Tetsuo Kobayashi. Interpreting the traditional Japanese patterns left by his predecessors in his own unique way, he puts his own twist on materials, tools, and processes, sparing no pains to express his "own uniqueness" in his works.
Ta-da!
Sakurajima Island from Kagoshima city and on Sakurajima Island 😊📸
Sakurajima island, which is located in Kagoshima Prefecture, is an active stratovolcano with three peaks, Kita-dake, Nakadake and still active Minami-dake. There are eruptions 10 to 500 times every year!
A man who caught the fish was a guest at the restaurant today and I spoke with him! It is a pleasure to meet face-to-face and communicate with the person who caught the fish and the person who cooked the dishes! I felt more and more warmth in each dish!🤗🧡
This is the work of Hideki Orikasa, a potter in Kasama City, which is adjacent to Mashiko. Made with straw and wood ashes, the design is rustic yet sophisticated. The color scheme of brown and white is wonderful!😍 I would like to have a cake with this plate.🍰
Items created out of necessity are firmly rooted in our daily lives. Every time we see or use them, we are reminded of their makers and places of origin. And the more you learn about the makers and the places, the more you become attached to them. This is a charm of folk art☺️💗
A climbing kiln is a type of kiln for firing ceramics in which a series of cells with several to a dozen chambers are built in a staircase-like pattern on a hill or other inclined surface! Have you seen it in your country?🤔✨
Born in Mashiko Town, Shinpei Fukushima trained under his father after graduating from art school, and is currently active in Mashiko. The "shinogi" decoration, which is synonymous with him, is characterized by its soft atmosphere. The ridges are carefully placed one by one.
This is a video of the interview of Saneyuki Hirota in Japanese, but you can see some parts of the creation process 🤗🌟🎬
I can't believe he paints such detailed pictures without any drafts!!
Works by Mr. Takashi Hasegawa of the pottery studio Hasegawa. It has been 15 years since he first joined the kiln to help his father. Now he says, "I can't get enough of the clay. I always try to make dishes that are easy to use and go well with any kind of food."
And Hidden Sakurajima radishes in Sakurajima Island📸 You see?😁✨
I also found a manhole with some illustrations of radish, but I inadvertently missed taking a picture🥲
At a Japanese restaurant where we can enjoy freshly caught fish and Japanese sake in a relaxed atmosphere 😌🌟
cheers!🍶
-Filefish soup
-Appetizer
-Horse mackerel sashimi
-Two types of fried horse mackerel
-Mousse, crème brûlée, macaron and pound cake with plenty of citrus fruits
Sakurajima ware is fired at high temperatures using natural ingredients from Sakurajima island, such as volcanic ash, iron-rich hot spring water, and plants and trees from the site. The energy of Sakurajima island and the one of the potters are incorporated into this pottery!🌋🔥
Tobi Kanna is a technique that Wakaba's father learned in Kyushu, which is located in the southern part of Japan. Her husband Tomo has now inherited the technique. He also studied mug and pitcher making at Leach Pottery in St. Ives in England.
Work of Tomo of Enokida kiln☺️🌟
"Daruma" of Shimadzu Satsuma kiriko 🥸
Daruma dolls get up no matter how many times they fall down. It is a good-luck charm when praying for success. We draw one eye with a strong determination to make it happen, and when our wish comes true we draw the other eye as well🎨💫
"Shinogi" is a traditional Japanese ceramic technique in which a ridge pattern is created by scraping the surface of body of pottery using tools such as spatulas and planes. By applying glaze to the shaved pattern, shades of color are created, giving the piece a unique.🏔✨
Leach Pottery was opened in St. Ives in 1920 by Bernard Leach and Shoji Hamada. The Leach Pottery was the first in the West to have a Japanese-style climbing kiln, and the two men devoted themselves to the study and recreation of English slipware.
Shoji Hamada (1894-1978) did not create pieces that only he could make, but designed and created a system so that any craftsman could make Mashiko ware like his, creating the foundation for subsequent Mashiko ware.
The works of Doraku kiln in the village of Iga ware with a history dating back to the Middle Ages. Masatake Fukumori, the seventh generation of the kiln's owner, loves delicious food above all else and creates his works with love for nature, which gives birth to foodstuffs.🌿
Mishio Suzuki of Atelier Zum Tal says that she always feels responsible for making wares because she receives materials from the earth and makes wares with the benefits of nature. Therefore, she says, she always wants to give back to nature.🌿🍀🌼
In Germany people who make things have to be responsible for the final stage of the things, until they become waste. Mishio Suzuki of Atelier Zum Tal learned how to think about the environment in Germany. It is wonderful to see Japanese handicrafts mixed with foreign ideas 🇩🇪🇯🇵🌿
Masu Minakawa is famous as a painter of ceramics known as sansui-dobin(landscape clay teapot). It is said that the paintings seemed to emerge from Masu's naturally moving hands rather than being painted, and this drew attention during the Mingei (folk art) movement.
Wall hanging with Satsuma ware and Yakusugi cedar from Yakushima Island, which is registered as a World Natural Heritage site. It depicts the landscape of Kagoshima prefecture🏔🌿✨
This is a work of Kazuhito Yamamoto's pottery. Mr.Yamamoto is a dexterous person who sometimes works as a carpenter and sometimes as a beekeeper. Through his free imagination and diligent research, he uses a variety of glazes and fires his vessels in a kiln of his own making.
Enokida Kiln is a fifth generation kiln, with Tomo being the fifth generation. Wakaba and Tomo are a wife and husband team, and they use Mashiko clay and traditional glazes.
The Daiseigama climbing kiln, the largest in Mashiko, is used once or twice a year to fire 2,000 to 3,000 pieces of ware in three days!😳✨ The kiln requires a lot of manpower and labor, not only during firing, but also for filling wares in the kiln and cleaning it after firing.
Shoji Hamada was influenced by Bernard Leach, and after returning to Japan, he chose Mashiko as the place for his work. He found the beauty of folk art in the simplicity of Mashiko ware and tried to sublimate it into a better "Mashiko-ness" to pass it on to future generations..🌟
Masu Minakawa's "sansui" earthenware teapot depicting natural sceneries stunned the world at the First International Crafts Exhibition in Berlin in 1938, and her work was awarded a special prize🏅🏔🌿
This is a work by Ms. Fujita of Fujita Workshop.She mixes clay from around her house to make her ceramics.She says that she makes her pottery without forgetting to "create with sincerity". Fujita's personality can be seen in the way she chooses raw materials and makes glazes.
Until then, the mainstream of crafts had been the works of art by artists, but in 1926, Muneyoshi Yanagi, Kanjiro Kawai, Shoji Hamada, and others advocated that beauty lies in the daily necessities of the common people.
Set of wine glasses of Satsuma ware🍷
They are so beautiful, aren't they?
Actually, it's a souvenir for myself😁 I fell in love with them at first sight! ❤
The characteristic of Mr. Wakabayashi's pottery is that it is not only easy to use but also comfortable to hold and use. It is one of my favorites, which makes my heart warm when I have it by my side ☺️🧡
After learning overglaze painting of bold patterns in Okinawa, Hirota moved to Kagoshima in 1978. When he saw at first glance the delicate work of Satsuma ware, he felt that this was something that absolutely had to be preserved for future generations, and he began his career.