{"product_id":"sasaki-shoraku-raku-chawan-toki-akari-sunset-gradation-tea-bowl","title":"Sasaki Shoraku Raku Chawan 'Toki Akari' Sunset Gradation Tea Bowl","description":"A Kyoto Raku chawan named Toki Akari — time's illumination — where the surface moves from molten saffron at the rim through burning amber to a deep charcoal base, as if a single sunset has been captured in fired clay. By Sasaki Shoraku, a respected name in Kyoto's Raku tradition. Original tomobako signed 昭楽. Ideal for the collector who collects with their eyes first.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ BASIC DETAILS ]\u003cbr\u003e• Artist: Sasaki Shoraku (佐々木昭楽), Kyoto Raku ware kiln\u003cbr\u003e• Work Title: 「時、あかり」(Toki Akari — Time, Illumination)\u003cbr\u003e• Technique: Raku yaki (hand-molded, low-temperature lead-free glaze firing)\u003cbr\u003e• Era: Contemporary\u003cbr\u003e• Origin: Kyoto, Japan\u003cbr\u003e• Dimensions: Approx. height 8 cm, diameter 10 cm (compact Raku form)\u003cbr\u003e• Box: Original tomobako with brush-written title and artist seal 昭楽\u003cbr\u003e• Condition: Excellent. Glaze crazing is intentional and characteristic of Raku ware.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ CULTURAL \u0026amp; ARTISTIC INSIGHT ]\u003cbr\u003eRaku ware was born in 16th-century Kyoto when the potter Chojiro, working under the aesthetic direction of Sen no Rikyu, created the first intentionally hand-formed, non-wheel-thrown tea bowls. The Raku tradition — marked by low-temperature firing, hand-shaping, and the distinctive soft weight in the palm — became the definitive expression of wabi tea. Sasaki Shoraku continues a lineage of Kyoto Raku potters who inherited this philosophy of direct engagement between hand and clay.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe crazing — that fine web of hairline fractures across the glaze surface — is not a flaw. It is the visible record of thermal contraction, a pattern written by physics, unique to every Raku bowl ever fired.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ DEEP-DIVE COMMENTARY ]\u003cbr\u003eThis bowl carries extraordinary visual intensity. The exterior sweeps from a near-black base through the full spectrum of fire: gray-green at the foot, deepening amber at the waist, a blazing orange-saffron at the shoulder, then a yellow-gold at the lip. From above, the interior glows a continuous warm orange — like looking into a low sun.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe crazing pattern across this graduated surface gives the glaze an almost textile quality — it recalls the cracked ground of summer earth or the fine-veined surface of old parchment. The hand-formed silhouette has a slight asymmetry at the mouth — characteristic of authentic Raku hand-shaping — and the walls are thick and warm in a way that wheel-thrown ceramics rarely achieve.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe title 「時、あかり」reflects Shoraku's stated intention: the bowl as a vessel for a moment of warmth. In the context of chado, the tea ceremony, each bowl carries a seasonal resonance — and this one belongs unmistakably to autumn dusk.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFor collectors interested in Kyoto craft lineage, contemporary Raku ware, or simply objects with strong visual presence, this bowl has the density of intention that defines pieces that endure in a collection.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e---\u003cbr\u003e[ JAPANESE DESCRIPTION \/ 日本語解説 ]\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ 基本情報 ]\u003cbr\u003e• 作家：佐々木昭楽（京都楽焼窯元）\u003cbr\u003e• 作品名：「時、あかり」\u003cbr\u003e• 技法：楽焼（手捏ね、低温焼成）\u003cbr\u003e• 年代：現代\u003cbr\u003e• 産地：京都\u003cbr\u003e• サイズ：高さ約8cm、径約10cm（推定）\u003cbr\u003e• 付属品：共箱（昭楽の落款・題字入り）\u003cbr\u003e• 状態：良好。貫入は楽焼の特性。\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ 文化・芸術解説 ]\u003cbr\u003e楽焼は千利休の美意識のもと、16世紀の京都で長次郎によって生まれた侘び茶のための器。手捏ねの柔らかなフォルムと、掌に収まる温かな重さが特徴。佐々木昭楽は京都楽焼の系譜を継ぐ作家で、伝統様式に現代の感性を融合させた作風が知られる。\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🔹 [ 詳細解説 ]\u003cbr\u003eこの茶碗の景色は圧倒的だ。漆黒の高台から、灰緑・琥珀・燃えるようなオレンジへと続くグラデーション。口縁にかけては黄金色が宿り、内側は一面の深い橙色に染まっている。貫入の網目が、まるで乾いた大地のような繊細な質感を与える。「時、あかり」——光と時間を器に封じた、昭楽の詩的な一碗。\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","brand":"The Modern Zen Archive","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":61654048047474,"sku":"260307_a_2412","price":905.0,"currency_code":"AED","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0960\/5680\/3698\/files\/m92766494259_1.jpg?v=1773284984","url":"https:\/\/checkout.themodernzenarchive.com\/products\/sasaki-shoraku-raku-chawan-toki-akari-sunset-gradation-tea-bowl","provider":"The Modern Zen Archive","version":"1.0","type":"link"}