Matcha Bowl Dragon Motif Overglaze Enamel Chawan by Shibata Tadashi

Shibata Tadashi's dragon chawan — a matcha bowl where overglaze enamels carry a form that spirals with the density of a carved seal. Bold, dynamic, undamaged. Shared box. The dragon does not threaten; it declares.

🔹 [ Basic Details ]
• Artist: 柴田正 (Shibata Tadashi)
• Technique: Polychrome overglaze enamel (色絵), dragon motif
• Era: Contemporary
• Origin: Japan
• Dimensions: D 12 cm × H 7.5 cm
• Box: Shared wooden box (共箱) included
• Condition: No damage; excellent

🔹 [ Cultural & Artistic Insight ]
The dragon (ryū) is the most architecturally complex motif in East Asian decorative arts. Unlike Western dragons, the Japanese ryū is a benevolent celestial creature — ruler of water, bringer of rain, guardian of the transformative power that turns carp into dragons as they ascend the waterfall. In the tea room, a dragon chawan carries auspicious weight: strength disciplined by ceremony, power channeled through stillness. The overglaze enamel dragon on this chawan spirals across the bowl's exterior with the full vocabulary of the motif — scaled body, cloud-like mane, grasping claws, and the single central jewel that the dragon perpetually pursues.

Colorful overglaze enamels — likely blue, green, red, gold, and white — give the dragon its chromatic vitality, each scale individually worked to maintain the illusion of dimensional form across a curved ceramic surface.

🔹 [ Deep-Dive Commentary ]
Rendering a ryū in overglaze enamel on a chawan presents specific compositional challenges. The dragon's elongated, spiraling body must wrap coherently around the bowl's circumference without appearing crowded or severed by the curvature. The head — the compositional climax — must be positioned to reward the viewer who turns the bowl to find it, creating a moment of discovery within the formal structure of temae.

Shibata Tadashi's approach, as indicated by the note's description of a bold, dynamic design, suggests a painterly rather than restrained interpretation: the overglaze palette is used at full chromatic intensity, producing a bowl that announces itself rather than receding. This is a valid and historically well-attested mode in Japanese ceramics — the Imari tradition, the Kutani akatae style, and the polychrome Arita wares all demonstrate the tradition of maximalist decoration as a form of cultural authority.

At D 12 cm × H 7.5 cm, this is a standard-proportion chawan suited to matcha preparation. The absence of any damage — chips, cracks, or restoration — is notable for a piece with bold decorative ambition, where thick enamel applications sometimes craze or flake under thermal cycling. The shared box confirms the maker's confidence in the work as a presentable whole.

For collectors of dragon-motif ceramics or Japanese zodiac-year pieces, this chawan offers a substantial and well-preserved example of the motif at a scale and format suited to both display and use.

【日本語説明】

🔹 [ 基本情報 ]
• 作者：柴田正
• 技法：色絵（龍文）
• 時代：現代
• 産地：日本
• 寸法：口径12cm × 高さ7.5cm
• 箱：共箱付
• 状態：損傷なし。良好な状態

🔹 [ 文化・芸術的背景 ]
龍は東アジアの装飾芸術における最も力強い吉祥文様であり、茶碗に描かれることで茶の湯の精神と天上の力が交差します。色絵による多彩な龍の表現は、柿右衛門様式や九谷赤絵の伝統に連なる格調ある技法です。

🔹 [ 詳細解説 ]
龍文を茶碗の曲面に展開するには高度な構図力が必要です。本作では動感のある龍が茶碗の外面を巡り、手に取った者に存在感を示します。干支の辰年に限らず、茶事の席で力強い取り合わせとして通年使用できる一碗です。

🔹 [ SHIPPING & PACKAGING ]
• Dispatch: Within 1-6 business days
• Carrier: Japan Post EMS / UPS (with tracking)
• Packaging: Carefully wrapped with protective materials