Tokoname Japanese Clay Teapots - Mogake with Western Style-Handle

 
 

Artist: Hokujo (Shimizu Genji, HokujoToubou studio )
Strainer-style: Clay sasame
Packaging: Cardboard box

The random marks on this teapot are produced by a technique called mogake. For this technique, Shimizu Genji gathers long, string-like pieces of seaweed from the shores of Ise Bay ( Tokoname is on a peninsula facing out to the Pacific Ocean ) and wraps his unglazed wares with them before firing. During firing, the salt in the seaweed reacts with the clay, leaving a distinctive, spidery- thin tracing of pinkish-brown color across the surface of the pots.