with a signed box
Showa period
living national treasure
D6.5cm H4.8cm
This is a sake cup with a bellflower painted on the side. The bellflower is a representative design of Koichi Tamura.
Koichi Tamura received instruction from Kenkichi Tomimoto, was recognized by Shoji Hamada, and built his own kiln in Sano City, Tochigi Prefecture, where he was born and raised. He was later recognized as a living national treasure for his iron painting.
Koichi TAMURA
1918 - 1987
Tamura Kōichi, throughout his long career, demonstrated a mastery of wheel throwing, glazing and firing techniques. Since childhood, he showed a talent for drawing and assisted his father, a third generation doll maker. It was a seminal visit to the mingei (folk art) potters Hamada Shōji and Sakuma Tōtarō in nearby Mashiko that drew him to the field of ceramics.
Initially his works showed the influence of Hamada, but quickly he became known for iron-glazed works that featured reddish-brown, persimmon glazed wax-resist designs against a black ground. A further innovation was his application of brushed white hakeme glaze beneath his iron-oxide patterning. Later on, he further augmented these designs with copper red and lastly experimented with a celadon green glaze ground. His work is characterized by strong brushwork and lyrical, asymmetrical designs. He was designated in 1986 as the National Living Treasure for tetsu-e techniques (iron-glazed patterned ceramics).
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