{"product_id":"sakuma-kenji-mashiko-yunomi-tea-cup-two-tone-tenmoku-white-glaze","title":"Sakuma Kenji Mashiko Yunomi Tea Cup Two-Tone Tenmoku White Glaze","description":"Experience authentic Japanese ceramics with this Sakuma Kenji Mashiko yunomi tea cup. This handcrafted stoneware vessel serves as a functional tea cup and collectible art piece, featuring bold two-tone glazing and tenmoku depth—a must-have for any collector seeking Mashiko pottery and contemporary Japanese craft.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ BASIC DETAILS ]\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e• Artist: Sakuma Kenji (佐久間賢司)\u003cbr\u003e• Technique: Two-tone glaze — white feldspathic over tenmoku iron glaze\u003cbr\u003e• Era: 2010 – 2019\u003cbr\u003e• Origin: Mashiko, Tochigi Prefecture, Japan\u003cbr\u003e• Dimensions: 7.5 cm diameter × 8.3 cm height (3.0\" × 3.3\")\u003cbr\u003e• Box: Tomobako (signed wooden box with artist calligraphy and red in-seal)\u003cbr\u003e• Condition: Excellent\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ CULTURAL \u0026amp; ARTISTIC INSIGHT ]\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMashiko has long stood as a place where clay speaks plainly. Since Hamada Shoji chose its hillsides as his home, the town has cultivated a philosophy that refuses to separate beauty from use. Sakuma Kenji works within this lineage — not as imitator, but as someone who absorbed the principle at its root: that a vessel held daily deserves the same intention as one placed behind glass.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis yunomi divides itself into two worlds. The upper third wears a quiet white — opaque, still, carrying the weight of snowfall. Below, a deep tenmoku brown rises from the foot, dense and earthbound. Where these two fields converge, amber rivulets trace their own path downward, each drip a record of the kiln’s atmosphere at the moment of transformation. The effect is geological — a mountain seen from distance, snow dissolving into dark stone.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e*\"The cup does not depict a landscape. It became one.\"*\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ DEEP-DIVE COMMENTARY ]\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e**Mashiko Lineage**: Mashiko ware carries no pretension of refinement for its own sake. Founded on the mingei ideal that daily objects possess inherent dignity, the tradition asks potters to honor material and function equally. Sakuma’s work embodies this — the yunomi is substantial in the hand, built for mornings that repeat.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e**Two-Tone Glazing**: The contrast between white and tenmoku is not painted but poured — gravity and viscosity determining the final composition. The amber transition zone exists because the potter allowed the kiln to finish what his hands began. This restraint — knowing when to stop — defines the Mashiko sensibility.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e**Form and Proportion**: The straight-walled cylinder tapers slightly toward the base, creating a visual lift that counterbalances the density of the dark glaze. The proportions feel certain. There is no hesitation in the profile — this is a form arrived at through repetition, not experiment.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e**Tomobako Authentication**: The signed wooden box bears the inscription \"湯呑 益子焼 賢司\" with the artist’s red square seal, confirming provenance and authorship directly from the potter’s hand.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ 日本語解説 ]\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e【基本情報】\u003cbr\u003e• 作家：佐久間賢司\u003cbr\u003e• 技法：白釉・天目釉 二重掛け\u003cbr\u003e• 時代：2010年代\u003cbr\u003e• 産地：栃木県益子町\u003cbr\u003e• 寸法：径7.5cm × 高さ8.3cm\u003cbr\u003e• 付属：共箱（署名・落款あり）\u003cbr\u003e• 状態：良好\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e【解説】\u003cbr\u003e益子の土と向き合い続ける佐久間賢司の湯呑。上部の白釉と下部の天目釉が交わる境界線には、琥珀色の釉だれが自然に生まれ、まるで雪を頂く山容のような景色を見せます。濱田庄司が拓いた「用の美」の精神を受け継ぎながら、日々の暮らしに寄り添う器として確かな存在感を持つ一碗です。\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e円筒形の安定した造形は手に馴染みやすく、朝の一服に静かな充足をもたらします。共箱には「湯呑 益子焼 賢司」の箱書きと朱印が搗され、作家本人の手による真作であることを証します。\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ SHIPPING \u0026amp; PACKAGING ]\u003cbr\u003e• Dispatch: Within 1-6 business days\u003cbr\u003e• Carrier: Japan Post EMS \/ UPS (with tracking)\u003cbr\u003e• Packaging: Carefully wrapped with protective materials\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e*Where white descends into dark earth, the mountain holds its silence.*","brand":"The Modern Zen Archive","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":61593221562738,"sku":"260113_a_1536","price":765.0,"currency_code":"AED","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0960\/5680\/3698\/files\/m35275795645_1.jpg?v=1771031421","url":"https:\/\/checkout.themodernzenarchive.com\/products\/sakuma-kenji-mashiko-yunomi-tea-cup-two-tone-tenmoku-white-glaze","provider":"The Modern Zen Archive","version":"1.0","type":"link"}