E-Oribe Matcha Bowl

A matcha bowl in E-Oribe ware, made by Kazufumi Wada, the fourth-generation master of the Keizan kiln in Toki City, Gifu Prefecture. Thrown on the wheel and deliberately given an irregular form, it is a vessel full of character.

E-Oribe is a traditional Mino ware in which patterns are painted in iron pigment over Oribe's green glaze. The distortion of the form and the hand-painted design give the bowl a sense of movement. It is a shape said to have been favored by Furuta Oribe, the tea master of the Azuchi-Momoyama period.

Wada selects and blends the clay and glazes himself. He shapes each piece on the wheel, paints each one by hand, and fires them.

Even with the same clay and the same techniques, the colors that emerge from the firing vary. The shape, the size, and the brushwork of the painting differ from piece to piece. Iron specks, uneven coloring, glaze runs, pinholes, and small blemishes are all part of the individuality born of the kiln and of handwork.

What is made by hand sits well in the hand. The slightly irregular form nestles easily into the palm and meets the lips comfortably. Delivered in a wooden box that Wada has painted himself with his own brush. A bowl we recommend both for your daily cup and as a gift for someone dear.