Japanese Oribe Chawan Tea Bowl by Kato Tokuro

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A modern ceramic Chawan (Tea Bowl) by potter Kato Tokuro (1896-1985). The bowl was hand-molded in the classic Han-tsutsu-gata (half … Read more A modern ceramic Chawan (Tea Bowl) by potter Kato Tokuro (1896-1985). The bowl was hand-molded in the classic Han-tsutsu-gata (half cylinder) form with slight irregularity. Technically made in the Oribe ware tradition, the artist induced large and prominent crackles on the entire glazed surface to render the piece a modern look. The crackles resemble the abstract patterns first seen on Chinese Ge Ware of Song dynasty. The color of the glaze also departs from the traditional Oribe ware with a more luster luminescent quality in a color close to celadon. A swipe of the deeper green on one side of the bowl added a poetic touch to the piece. The rim of the bowl is slightly undulating, and the form shows subtle irregularity viewing from different angles. The base of the bowl was left unglazed and has a carved signature Tokuro as shown.
Born in Seto, Tokuro devoted himself to researching and producing Shino and Oribe ware. In 1929, he founded the Society for the Surveying and Preservation of the Old Seto Kilns and associated himself with fellow promoters of Mingei folk-art movements, such as Yanagi Muneyoshi, Kawai Kanjiro, and Hamada Shoji. After the war, Kato founded and became the first chairman of the Japan Ceramics Society in 1947, formed the Tori Society together with Ishiguro Munemaro, Kaneshige Toyo, Arakawa Toyozo, Kato Hajime, and others in 1954, and won the Chunichi Cultural Award in 1956. Tokuro became a director of the Japan Kogei Association in 1957 and a lecturer at the School of Letters, Nagoya University in 1958. After 1960, he devoted himself to the free pursuit of ceramics as an unaffiliated potter. See less