Kohiki Hakeme Matcha Bowl

A kohiki hakeme (brushed white slip) matcha bowl made by Kazufumi Wada, the fourth-generation potter at Keizan kiln in Toki City, Gifu Prefecture. Shaped one at a time on the wheel, it is an unpretentious vessel with the warmth of clay.

Kohiki hakeme is a technique in which white slip is swept on quickly with a brush, leaving the brush marks themselves as the pattern. The momentum of the brush appears just as it was across the white surface. To the touch, the surface is smooth.

The red area below is clay with a high iron content, and its gritty texture is left just as it is. Wada selects and blends the clay and glazes himself.

Even with the same clay and the same technique, the colouring that emerges from the firing varies. Form and size, too, differ slightly from piece to piece. Iron speckles, uneven colour, glaze runs, small blemishes and slight warping are all the individuality born of the kiln and of handwork.

What is made by hand sits well in the hand. Held with its front in mind, it settles comfortably into the palm. The bowl is delivered in a wooden box inscribed by Wada's own brush. A fine bowl for an everyday serving of tea, or as a gift for someone dear to you.