This is Goma teapot by Hosokawa Takahiro. It is a teapot made of Bizen clay with a Chinese-style backhand shape. It has just the right volume for brewing Chinese or Taiwanese tea. It is packaged as a gift, combining Echizen lacquerware and furoshiki wrapping cloth.
Mr. Hosokawa specializes in works that make use of the natural texture of the clay to express the earth of Bizen. His style is powerful and dynamic, not bound by the traditional expression of Bizen ware.
The details of the design, such as the lid and spout, are very carefully crafted. He has dozens of clay blend patterns and continues to explore Bizen clay. He is a notable artist whose popularity is increasing in mainland China, with his works selling out every time he holds a solo exhibition in Beijing.
(Biography of Hosokawa Takahiro)
Born in Okayama Prefecture in 1979.
Graduated from the Bizen Ceramic Art Center in 1999. Learned pottery making under his grandfather Takemura Eiraku.
2015 Tokyo American Club Frederick Harris Gallery
2016 Solo exhibition at Beijing Suzuki Shoten (2017, 2019)
2019 Selected for the Tabe Museum of Art Tea Ceremony Art Exhibition
Bizen ware is pottery that expresses itself with earth and fire. It is said that preparing clay accounts for more than half of the work involved in Bizen ware, so preparing clay is an important task.
Bizen has soils of various colors and properties, and artists search for soil that suits their work. Bizen soil has coarse particles, making it difficult to make complex shapes like teapots. For this reason, Bizen ware tea utensils are mostly matcha bowls, lidded bowls, and houhin, and there are very few teapots.
Bizen soil contains iron. According to a survey on Bizen ware kiln changes (the 3rd Okayama Studies Symposium, by Kazuhiro Yamaguchi, Okayama University of Science), the iron content of Bizen clay is about 2-3%.
The iron combines with tannins, which are the bitter taste components of tea. Therefore, tea brewed in a teapot made from Bizen clay has a smoother taste with less bitterness.
We once held a tasting event in Hong Kong using Bizen ware teapots. The tasting was lively, with many people saying that when brewing Pu-erh ripe tea, the tea tasted especially smooth. Since taste perception varies from person to person, it is difficult to make a general statement, but it certainly does taste smoother.
We feel that Bizen teapots make tea taste smoother than Tokoname red clay teapots. Tokoname red clay has an iron content of about 5-6%, while Bizen clay has an iron content of about 2-3%, so if we look only at the iron content, Tokoname red clay should be more likely to combine with tannins.
The reason tea brewed in a Bizen ware teapot tastes smoother is probably because Bizen clay has large particles and there are voids in the clay even after firing, which allows it to absorb more bitterness. In other words, I think that it is the size of the clay particles and the amount of iron that affect the taste of tea. The clay from Bizen has larger particles, so the effect is greater.
Bizen ware does not have patterns painted on the vessels, but the patterns are created by the flow of the flames that change inside the kiln and the technique. The way the flame hits the vessel changes depending on where it is placed, such as near the entrance to the kiln, on a high place, or near a corner. Each vessel is made by relying on the natural flame, and no two vessels are the same.
Goma means sesame in Japanese and is a traditional Bizen ware technique. It is so named because the pine ash, which is the fuel in the kiln, falls on the vessel in places that look like sesame seeds. It is characterized by the texture of Bizen clay and the gradation of brown.
Ceramics are characterized by the warm texture of the clay, which makes you feel that it is a product of nature. Bizen ware allows you to feel the nature of Bizen and flames. This teapot is a fusion of Chinese tea culture and Bizen clay, expressing a traditional Chinese teapot with Bizen clay.
We ordered a lacquer box to store the teapot to Ootoshi Lacquerware, a long-established Echizen lacquerware studio that has been in business for four generations. It is made using real lacquer and the traditional process of Echizen lacquerware. It takes three months to complete because each piece is made by hand.
The surface of the lacquer box has a soft thickness and a modest luster that is unique to lacquer. Lacquer boxes are not only used to store teapots, but are also beautiful as crafts and can be used as interior decorations for rooms. Wrapping them in a furoshiki cloth with a traditional design gives them an even more Japanese and cultural look.
Potter: Hosokawa Takahiro (Bizen ware)
Firing: Wood-fired kiln
Size: Total length 11 cm (including handle and spout), body diameter 7 cm, height 8 cm
Capacity: 130 ml
Weight: Approximately 150 g
Notes: Since it is handmade, there are slight differences between each piece.
Because the clay particles are coarse, the hot water does not stop even if you press the hole on the top of the lid. When pouring water, do not tilt the teapot vertically, but pour slowly to ensure smooth pouring.
<Lacquerware box>
Maker: Ootoshi Lacquerware (Echizen lacquerware)
Size: Length 10.8cm, Width 10.8cm, Height 11.5cm
Weight: 230-260g
Materials: Lid - Shina plywood / Body - Hiba wood / Paint - Natural lacquer
Notes: Handmade in Fukui Prefecture. All sides are painted black lacquer.
<Furoshiki wrapping cloth>
Maker: Miyai Co., Ltd.
Material: 100% cotton
Weight: Approximately 50g
Notes: Manufactured in Kyoto Prefecture. You can choose the color of the furoshiki from green or brown.
*Bizen ware
Bizen ware is pottery made in Bizen City, Okayama Prefecture. Bizen ware began production at the end of the Heian period, about 800 years ago. Bizen ware is fired at high temperatures of 1200-1300℃, and because it is sturdy, many pots and jars were initially made. Tea masters favored Bizen ware for its unique clay texture, and since the Muromachi period (1338-), many pottery pieces for the tea ceremony have been produced.
Bizen ware is characterized by the fact that the clay is fired as is without being glazed, and the beauty of the patterns that make use of the taste of the clay. Bizen ware is mainly fired in wood-fired kilns. The main fuel is pine wood, and the pottery is fired for about two weeks.
There are two types of clay: rice field clay, which is mainly taken from rice paddies, and mountain clay, which is taken from the mountains. The beautiful patterns unique to Bizen ware are created with clay rich in iron, and the clay taste of each artist is created by the mixture of clay.
When Bizen ware gets wet, the color becomes lighter, and the color changes with prolonged use. The changes are a great sight to see, so you can enjoy watching the vessel develop as you use it.
*Echizen lacquerware
The origins of Echizen lacquerware date back about 1,500 years. Before Emperor Keitai, the 26th Emperor of Japan, ascended to the throne, he ordered a lacquer craftsman from Echizen to repair his crown. The lacquer craftsman repaired the crown with lacquer and presented a lacquered bowl to the Emperor. The production of lacquerware was encouraged, and lacquerware production began in Katayama village, Sabae City, Fukui Prefecture.
Echizen has many lacquer trees, and it is said that at its peak it produced half of the lacquer in the country. When Nikko Toshogu Shrine in Tochigi Prefecture was built, the Tokugawa Shogunate ordered lacquer craftsmen from Echizen to collect lacquer.
Since the Muromachi period, lacquered bowls have been widely used in Buddhist ceremonies. At the end of the Edo period, maki-e craftsmen were invited from Kyoto to introduce the technique of maki-e. The technique of chinkin was adopted from Wajima in Noto, and Echizen lacquerware became decorative in addition to its durability.
From the middle of the Meiji period onwards, trays and stacked boxes called "kakumono" (square objects) began to be made. The square bowls used for zaru soba and sushi geta (wooden clogs) are also square objects. Bowls are called "marumono" (round objects). Square shapes require more lacquering steps than round objects, and lacquer tends to accumulate on the corners, making it difficult to produce a smooth, beautiful lacquer surface. Daionshi Lacquerware is a workshop that has been in business for four generations and specialises in square objects.
