The teabowl in the top left corner is a great example of a traditionally glazed shino bowl as it is characterized by a thick off-white glaze that has a citron skin texture inside and outside of the form. In addition, the form is not perfectly round, the rim is uneven and the foot was hand carved and irregular, all traits that were highly favored by the Japanese Tea Masters.The blacks that can be seen are carbon deposits that were trapped inside the molten glaze, a completely random process.
The tea bowl in the upper right hand corner is an Americanized version of a shino glaze. This glaze has been modified to have a smooth melt and exhibits very little pin-holing. I dipped this teabowl in a blue gray slip while the clay bowl was still in the leather hard stage.
The patterned line is a random spot of light carbon trapping and around the top rim specks of gold, almost like gold dust, are trapped within the glaze.
Keep an eye on the blog as I will be posting more photos of individual tea bowls with a brief description of my glaze and decorating process.
