Munehiko Maruta comes from a family of potters working in the Karatsu tradition on the southern island of Kyushu. His practice has continued Karatsu’s 20th century revival while adding an elegant and modern spirit to traditional forms and glazes.

This wide and shallow cup was made with a groggy and rough iron-rich clay native to the Karatsu region. Maruta threw it with very thick walls; it is a heavy cup. He covered the form with a flowing madara glaze made with the ash from burning rice straw. The creamy glaze hangs nicely on the sides, leaving the warm clay body exposed from underneath.

Karatsu’s roots can be traced to the potters who were forcibly brought to Kyushu in the 16th century to establish kilns in the area. Considered the most Korean of Japanese ceramics, these potters brought with them an “honest” aesthetic that would cause a shift in Japanese pottery. Karatsu wares were quickly recognized by Zen tea masters as embodying a natural spirit which spurred their adoption as preferred tea wares.

Comes with the signed, stamped, and titled wood box, and CV.