Form and surface in conversation. A series exploring the relationship between thrown and altered forms.
Embracing the unpredictable. Natural ash glazes fired in a wood-burning kiln, each piece unique.
Finding beauty in breakage. Broken ceramics repaired with gold lacquer, each scar becoming a feature.
Chawan for daily practice. Hand-thrown bowls shaped for the ritual of tea, each one a meditation.
Surrender to the kiln. Raku-fired pieces pulled from flames, their surfaces marked by smoke and chance.
Inspired by suiseki. Sculptural objects that evoke natural stone, placed with the deliberation of a zen garden.
Everything begins with earth. The clay is wedged by hand, air pockets pressed out in a rhythm older than memory. This is the stage of pure potential -- before form, before intention, just material waiting to become.
On the wheel, centering is everything. The clay resists at first, then yields. Each piece finds its own shape through a dialogue between maker and material. Imperfections are not corrected -- they are listened to.
Patience. The leather-hard stage, where the piece can be refined but not radically changed. Feet are trimmed, surfaces smoothed or deliberately left rough. Every choice is permanent from here.
The kiln transforms. In raku, the piece is pulled from 1000-degree heat and plunged into combustibles. In wood-firing, ash drifts onto surfaces for days. The maker surrenders control to flame and chemistry.
What breaks can be made more beautiful. Gold lacquer fills the cracks, transforming damage into decoration. This is the philosophy at the heart of the work: nothing is so broken it cannot be repaired with care and gold.
Every piece begins with a conversation.