Tea bowl in “Kohiki” style, Buncheong ware

“Kohiki" is a type of underglaze porcelain ware in which the entire vessel, even the inside of the base, is coated in white slip, and then fired with a transparent glaze.

Kohiki was produced for a brief period in the early Joseon Dynasty, before white porcelain became the mainstream, but it became popular among Japanese tea masters, and its reputation has been passed down to the present day.

As the name suggests, its appeal lies in the unique, powdery texture created by the thick underglaze white slip.

The beauty of this texture and white slip is the essence of Kohiki.

This work is a tea bowl with brightly colored white slip applied to the entire surface.

The small, tight base and the warped shape give a neat impression.

Looking into the inside, the color change and mottling made by use create a good texture.

The small black holes (pinholes), which are peculiar to kohiki and are caused by the passage of gas during firing, also appear here and there, giving the piece a neat yet varied appearance.

The transparent glaze applied over the white slip has a light green color, which also gives a multilayered visual effect to the bowl.

The shifuku is made of Indonesian ikat.

The red color is vivid to the eye, perhaps because it has not yet passed through water.