Orange or blue, brown or black, many shades of white – the earth is made of many different colours. I believe that pottery is a process of firing the earth and finding what colours exist in the clay.
The warmth of the tea and the texture of the bowl, where the lips touch the rim of the bowl, the lingering moment after all the tea has been drunk. And the beautiful colours the earth holds.
I want to make pottery that brings out that natural beauty.

I have an affection for tea bowls and I tend to make tea bowls most of the time.
If my finished ware has been praised to be “well made”, that will please me of course, but nothing makes me happier when I am told, “ I want to drink tea with this bowl”.
A well-made bowl has many conditions such as making the right shape, painting a beautiful design, and making the bowl light-weight. But the conditions for making a tea bowl that people will want to drink from, that is much more difficult.
But as tea bowls are meant for drinking tea, we cannot escape from this topic.

Presently, I have come up with the “answer” that the bowl must not “disturb or hinder” the tea.

But what kinds of things disturb or hinder delicious tea?

I believe an overdone design or artificial colours, a firing method that does not bring out the natural beauty of the clay, forcing your own image is what causes a hinderance.

My ideal bowl is a bowl with no forced image and that allows the tea be on its own. To me, improving my skills means to somehow lose the image of “myself”.
My only goal is to make tea bowls that people will want to drink from.

About The Earth

I was taught by my mentor, Taiyo, that there is nothing more beautiful than nature.
If you succeed in bringing out the colours in the soil that the earth holds, you will be able to realize the beauty of any soil, anywhere. I dig in the mountains, make clay and daily make potted wares.

About Glaze

The colours of the glazes I use are just three colours, clear, green and brown. However, I use many different types of clear glazes depending on the nature of the clay used. This is due to the different reflections of the light, the different textures and the different firing temperatures depending on the clay.

Making the Shape

Potter’s Wheel

Clay with unique properties will become a shape that is fit for that type of clay. Two types of clay thrown on a wheel the same way will have different shapes. The clay will move the way it wants to move and I spin the wheel so as not to disturb it.

Carving

This is another way to show the unique characteristics of the clay. By carving the smooth wheel-thrown surface, the inside of the clay can be seen. When carving, I aim to show the uniqueness of the clay.
I believe the outer surface and the inner surface of the bowl are connected just like the skin and internal organs of a human body.

Firing

When firing my wares, the only thing I think about is trying to express the beautiful colours hidden in the earth.
Flames stroke the bowl and beautiful colours appear that cannot be made artificially.
Potters do not pray to the God of Art but to the God of Fire. This is because the beauty of pottery is not made by people but by the flames of the fire.

• 1976 Born in Toki City, Gifu Prefecture, Japan
• 1996 Became apprentice to father, Aoba Taiyo
• 2000 Established his own kiln in Gifu Prefecture, Toki City
• 2009 Built great kiln in Hiroshima Prefecture

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