Nobuhito Nakaoka (仲岡信人), Japanese (b. 1977)

A Coloured Ash Glaze Guinomi (彩色灰釉ぐい呑)

Heisei Era (1989-2019) 

About the work

A highly expressive guinomi by contemporary ceramic artist Nobuhito Nakaoka, decorated with his distinctive coloured ash glaze. The compact drinking vessel has a softly rounded body with an irregular rim and subtly faceted surface, giving the small form a strong sculptural presence.

The exterior is animated by layers of creamy white, olive green, ochre, charcoal and reddish brown. Thick ash glaze runs vertically down the sides in irregular streams, pooling and breaking over the textured clay beneath. Areas of exposed reddish clay provide a warm contrast to the paler glaze, while darker patches and flashes of colour create a surface that changes considerably as the vessel is turned.

The interior is comparatively restrained, covered in a soft cream glaze that allows the irregular profile of the rim to stand out. On the underside, the glaze gives way to exposed iron rich clay surrounding the small foot, which bears the artist's incised mark.

The guinomi is accompanied by its original signed wooden tomobako, together with a cloth and documentation.

Dimensions

5.8cm(h) x 7.2cm(w)

Footnote

Nobuhito Nakaoka (仲岡信人), born in Osaka in 1977, is a Japanese ceramic artist working in the Tamba ware tradition. After apprenticing under Tamba potter Nishibata Tadashi, he completed ceramic studies at the Kyoto Municipal Institute of Industrial Technology in 2001. From 2003 to 2005, he served as a Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteer, working as a ceramics specialist in Saint Vincent. He established his independent kiln in Tachikui, Sasayama, in 2006. Nakaoka has been widely exhibited and awarded, including repeated selections for the Tabe Art Museum Award Exhibition for Tea Ceramics, the Kobe Biennale Contemporary Ceramics Competition, and the Hagi Grand Prize Exhibition. His work is noted for carbonized firing effects and a strong balance of sculptural presence and functional form.