A black cloak is draped from the shoulders of this mysterious character lurking in the shadows of the tea room by legendary potter Hori Ichiro enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Seto-guro Chawan. Matte over much of the surface, someplaces the blackness shines like midnight through the fog.
Size, D 12.7 cm H 10.2 cm
Condition, Excellent
Hori Ichiro (b. 1952) graduated the Tajimi School of Industrial Design and apprenticed under Kato Kozo...

Black splashes over spattered white slip draw the eye into the window in the darkenss on the side of this exquisite playful baluster form vase by Koie Ryoji enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled understatedly Tsubo. The title is the only thing simple about this complex combination of contemporary clay, glaze, tradition, form, function, past and future. A simply stunning work by this important artist...

Coffee Mug, ji-gusuri glaze with iron with red & green overglaze enamels; by Isamu Tagami of Hinata Kiln, Mashiko. H.3.375"(8.5cm) x Dia.3.0"(7.5cm,) Volume=9oz(270cc.) Tagami Isamu was born in 1947 in Mooka, a village neighboring to Mashiko. He married into the Sudo family and apprenticed under Sudo Takeo. He was originally trained as a Japanese chef and had his own restaurant before embarking on a career in pottery, giving him a unique perspective on functional wares...

Blue recedes from the wavering silver shore on this iconic form by Morino Taimei enclosed in the original signed wooden box.  Streaks of color, like the tide burbling back through the sand filled with oxygen and minerals.  Something very alive! 
Size, D 10.6 x 23.8  cm   H 25.4  cm  
Condition, Excellent 
Morino Taimei was born in Kyoto in 1934, and was first accepted into the Nitten National Exhibition at a relatively young age in 1957 (a year before graduating the Ky...

24" x 15", oil paint on wood. Alan Kessler was born 1945 in Philadelphia, PA. He was educated at the Philadelphia College of Art, Philadelphia, PA where he received a Bachelor of Fine Art. He then attended the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, MD where he received his Masters of Fine Art. He has had 16 solo exhibitions in New York, including six at O.K. Harris, two at the James Yu gallery, and the Dobrick Galleries in Chicago.

Thick white vitrifies over bottomless black, creating a stark sense of drama on this outstaniding work by world renowned potter Udagawa Hosei enclosed in the original signed wooden box complete with an exhibition pamphlet from Isetan Department Store advertising a similar work .
. The white glaze crawls and plays over the slightly blue tinged glaze, which covers the rough Hagi clay. The raw red clay is visible beneath where the glaze has crawled away to allow a peek inside...

Yunomi, Tea Cup, Mashiko-yaki, by Tagami Munetoshi. Rou nuki-e (wax resist) Kaki (persimmon) glaze exterior, with Nuka (rice husk ash) glazed interior. H. 3.5"(9cm) x Dia. 3"(7.5cm). Volume = 8oz(240cc.) Tagami Munetoshi (b. 1972) is the son of Tagami Isamu and grandson of Sudo Takeo. He is the 5th generation of potters in Mashiko’s Hinatagama (Hinata Kiln) founded during the Meiji Period (1868-1912) by Sudo Yujiro...

Lustrous green Oribe glazed chawan over a combed "breaking waves" pattern highlighted with an underglaze wash of purple-brown

Stoneware, slip, wash and glaze

5.5" X 3.85"

Functional, decorative and food safe

Mingei influenced stark white slipped bottle vase with dramatic hakame executed with a stiff boar's fur brush. This shape is a bit reminescent of Scandanavian form of the 1950's

Stoneware, slip and glaze

10.2" X 5.5"

A relatively new term, “Oni Tamba” is used to describe works of Tamba-ware fired using carbon trap and ash glazing techniques modeled after those pioneered by Tsukigata Nahiko in the 1950’s. This piece in particular displays a bold and innovative ceramic landscape that seems quite impressive for such a young artist as Onishi. One side of the bowl resembles charred igneous rock while the front shows a warm soft orangish glow—like an ember in a fireplace...

Generous stoneware yunomi with combed fence pattern, kushime decoration under a rich Oribe glaze.

Stoneware and glazes

4" x 3.75"

Functional, decorative and food safe

Living National Treasure Fujiwara Yu (1932-2001) Bizen Goma-Hidasuki Chawan (Studio Pottery Bizen ware).
The mark of the potter is carved on the bottom.

Very interesting chawan which combines two Bizen techniques: Goma (outer side) and Hidasuki (inner).
Goma resembles sesame seeds because the of the attached pine ash...

Group of six contemporary Japanese pottery videos, each in excellent condition and running just under an hour.

The videos showcase, Ningen Kokuho and other master craftmen from Bizem, Mino, Mashiko, Karatsu and painted porcelain works.The videos show 360 degree views of some of the potters works, as well as the potters studios, kilns and making pottery chawan, mizusashi, tsubo, etc...

Ash Glazed Flower Vessel by Mihara Ken enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Hai-yu Kaki (Ash Glazed Flower Vessel).  The entire work is soft and matte, like an old charcoal sketch, exuding a very powerful “Wa” sense of harmony.  Ken is well known for this pastel color concept of un-presupposing grays, and this piece certainly lives up to our expectations for him...

A little warmth on a cold winter day, lets have a look at cheerful works of Tokugawa Hiroshi. Here is a deep “Apple Shaped” tea bowl covered in lightly crackled Ki-Seto (Yellow Seto) glaze fired upside down so that the glaze coalesces at the rim into a thin bead of yellow glass. It is 12.5 cm (5 inches) diameter and comes enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Ki-Seto Chawan with Shiori and Shifuku...

Shino ware tea bowl made in the legendary Suigetsugama kiln which was built by one of the greatest Japanese potters of all times, Toyozo Arakawa (1894-1985).

Toyozo Arakawa was designated as Living National Treasure by Japanese Government in 1955 and well-known for reviving Shino glazes of Momoyama and Early Edo periods.

The Suigetsugama kiln itself was designated as an intangible cultural property of Tajimi City in 2010, as it has played an important role in maintaining a...

Lyrical and whimsical porcelain tsubo by Ishira Akira with overglaze enamels in red, yellow, green and Persian blue decorating the pure white surface. The surface is covered in red enamel, aka-e style creating a floral framework for the three rabbits articulated around the circumference of the pot with accents in other shades of enamel. The brushwork is easily seen and studied and shows a delft and exceedingly experienced hand.

Ishira Akira (b...

Exquisite Nezumi Shiino Chawan from the renowned Okuiso Eiroku (1930-1987), a disciple of the legendary Kato Tokuro, renowned for his mastery of Shino pottery...