CONTEMPORARY HIKIDASHI METHODS: THE PROCESS AND POETRY OF TEA BOWLS

Abstract

During the Japanese Momoyama Period (1573-1615) tea masters refined the principles of Japanese Tea Ceremony and directed potters to develop specific styles of tea bowls. The technique of Hikidashi required potters to remove bowls from kilns still firing and cool them quickly. Rapid cooling provided surface qualities distinctly different from the effects of the customary slow cooling in a kiln. This technique was short lived until its revival during the mid 20th century when Arakawa Toyozo and Kato Tokuro began researching and making Hikidashi tea bowls. My own introduction to Hikidashi occurred at the Peter Callas studio in 1994 when Okazaki Takao (Kato's former apprentice) demonstrated the techinque. I learned to make tea bowls and to wood fire anagama kilns from Callas and Okazaki. I have continued to make and explore tea bowls for the past twenty years. This research documents the processes of making Hikidashi wares whilst addressing the wider aesthetic nuances that are the focus and joy of my work.