111. HANZAWA Hiroshi, small square Oribe plate

111. HANZAWA Hiroshi, small square Oribe plate

For Hanzawa, see item 110.

Tan clay, green and white glazes; bottom left unglazed. Weight: 228 g (8 oz). Dimension: 15.2 cm (6 in) square; base: 6.3 cm (2-1/2 in) square. Height: 2 cm (3/4 in).

The piece is irregular, and the measurements are approximate. This was formed from a squarish piece of clay roughly 16 cm (6-1/4 in) on a side and about an eighth of an inch thick. It sits on a flat base that is roughly a square. The artist’s mark was incised into the underside of the piece. The remains of the posts used to separate pieces in the kiln during firing are visible on the underside. From the base the walls rise in a low irregular convex arc to the rim. Despite the irregular shape, the plate sits solidly on the base.

With the exception of the base, the exterior surface and the area of the interior surface covered with the green glaze were coated with a rough textured slip. A four-sided area in the center of the top side was created by incising four lines into the surface. This area was coated with a cream glaze, and green glaze was dribbled over the surface to form dots and lines. The rest of the upper side was coated with the copper-heavy green glaze characteristic of Oribe-ware. Because of the rough slip, this resulted in darker areas where the glaze pooled and lighter areas where it pulled away from the texturing.  Except for a few splashes of green, the bottom was left unglazed.

Purchased from the artist, May 2021.