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Whenever one mentions Karatsu ware, one necessarily mentions Korean pottery as well, because Karatsu ware is so closely connected to Korean ware. The geographical proximity of Karatsu to Korea (about 115 miles) means that Karatsu is closer to Korea than to Tokyo or Kyoto on the main island of Japan. This geographical connection implies a cultural connection, and indeed historically this is just what we find.

In the late 1500’s, Toyotomi Hideyoshi embarked on a campaign to conquer Korea as a doorway to China. His home base was Nagoya Castle near Karatsu. These campaigns came to be called the "Potters' Wars." Korean potters were, according to most historians, kidnapped, and brought with them their methods and expertise to the area in northern Kyushu that made Karatsu ware.

The lightweight and very responsive wooden kick wheel was introduced from Korea, along with certain specialized throwing techniques, as well as the efficient climbing type of wood fueled kiln. The Korean aesthetic of natural unpretentious forms and decorating techniques had a major influence on Karatsu production methods.

What Karatsu brought to the equation of Korean Karatsu was its unique clay, still prized and hoarded today. It is a very coarse, highly refractory clay with varying levels of iron content, depending on location. Because it is difficult to throw, certain throwing methods are used which in turn influence the Karatsu aesthetic. One of these is the use of clay slip, rather than water, while throwing. Another is the use of wooden tools called hera, which are fashioned by the potter, and which are used to compress the clay and shape the pot. Thirdly is a method of forming known as tataki, which means paddling. A paddle on the outside slaps an anvil on the inside, making the clay strong yet thin, so large, lightweight forms are possible. The limited plasticity of Karatsu clay also means that only rarely were additional parts, such as handles or spouts, attached to pots, and when they were, they were rather spontaneous and not elaborate.

Powerful lords in Karatsu and its environs competed to obtain the best craftsmen from Korea, and this fierce competitive race in ceramic production deeply influenced the Karatsu style and aesthetic. According to Richard Wilson in his book Inside Japanese Ceramics, "between about 1590 and 1640, the Karatsu potters absolutely dominated stoneware markets in western Japan. In order to sustain that high level of production, it was necessary to work efficiently and in order to maintain demand, the ware had to be appealing. The Karatsu potters found a balance." During this period of time, so popular was Karatsu ware, that in western Japan all ceramics were referred to as "karatsumono." Archeological evidence points to the existence of more than 80 kiln sites in this area. Competition and rapidity of production necessitated a high level of skill, and discouraged over-intellectualization of the creating process, both still features of modern day Karatsu.

The use of underglaze iron oxide for decorating is probably the most characteristic feature of Karatsu ware, known for simplistic drawings with nature as the most frequent subject. Glazing techniques peculiar to Karatsu include leaving bare the foot ring and the area in proximity to the foot ring to show the bare clay body. Korean wares, on the other hand, were usually entirely glazed. This practice of leaving the clay bare is one of the strongest Karatsu characteristics. Admirers of Karatsu ware appreciate the 'tsuchi-aji' or clay taste of these exposed areas. Because the Karatsu clay is coarse and porous in the raw state, the kiln temperature could be raised rather rapidly without fear of moisture being trapped in the clay body.

It is thought that Karatsu ware was originally primarily a household ware, with some pieces elevated from household ware to tea ceremony ware by tea enthusiasts, and other pieces made specifically for the tea ceremony. However, revived enthusiasm in the tea ceremony in the late eighteenth century meant revived interest in digging for old Karatsu ware around the old kiln sites. This enthusiasm on the part of tea ceremony devotees gave Karatsu ware a strong link to the tea ceremony, as they valued such qualities as the bare foot ring showing the grain of the Karatsu clay and the impromptu spirit of the decoration and glazing. Interest in the products and workings of the ancient kiln sites continues today, and for the most part it is widely agreed that the Karatsu ware made in the 75 to 100 years of the original Korean Karatsu heyday is the model of the ideal Karatsu style and aesthetic. Among tea ceremony enthusiasts, the saying goes, "Ichi, Hagi. Ni, Raku. San, Karatsu." It seems likely that a disproportionate number of the preserved pieces of Karatsu ware in museums today are tea ceremony items.

This 75 year period of the making of Old Karatsu drew to a close with Ri-Sampei's discovery of porcelain clay at nearby Izumiyama in 1616. Unlike Karatsu ware, which was never meant to appeal to westerners, Japanese porcelain quickly gained wide popularity both in Japan and in the Western world.

Thomas Aquinas describes beauty as including three conditions: 'integrity or perfection, due proportion or harmony, and thirdly, brightness or clarity, whence things are called beautiful which have a bright color,' According to these standards, it is easy to see why the white and brightly decorated, perfectly symmetrical porcelains would turn the heads of westerners. Only a deeper appreciation of complex concepts such as wabi, sabi, and shibusa reveal the beauty of understated and imperfect Karatsu ware.

The majority of famous examples of Karatsu ware remain in Japan. Idemitsu Museum has the largest collection of Karatsu ware and Tanakamaru Collection the second. Both of these collections are highlighted in exhibits throughout the Japan from time to time.

The third largest collection of Karatsu ware is part of the Edward S. Morse collection of Japanese ceramics at the Boston Museum of Fine Art. Unfortunately, most of the Karatsu pieces in the Morse collection are in storage and unavailable for viewing.

Types of Karatsu Ware

There are at least nine main types of ware produced since the Old Karatsu period.

E-Garatsu is by far the most common type of Karatsu ware, and when most people think of Karatsu, if they think of it at all, this is what they think of. "E" means simply painting or decoration, which is applied with a brush in under glaze iron oxide, sometimes mixed with a type of local yellow ochre to improve its adherence to the clay. The nature of iron oxide demands a certain freedom with the brush and a spontaneity of line. Any hesitation or attempt at correction, while not necessary noticeable in the unfired state, is immediately visible in the fired piece. Any number of feldspathic glazes may be used to glaze this type of ware.

Madara is used to refer to Karatsu ware glazed with a thick glaze made primarily from rice straw ash. The term 'madara' means spotted or splotchy. Under certain firing conditions and on certain types of clay, the glaze develops a slightly pinkish tinge, and specks of blue form just beneath the surface. This effect is especially rare and especially sought after. Madara-E refers to pieces with this glaze over an under glaze iron oxide design.

Kuro-Garatsu refers to ware with an amber colored or black glaze. In firing the amber colored glaze ('ame-yu') can develop deep blue areas which are especially prized. The fluidity of this glaze makes it very unpredictable and consequently interesting. The black, or so-called 'tenmoku' type glaze is also used. Sometimes an additional application of a layer of feldspathic glaze results in the striking effect known as 'jagatsu' or snakeskin.

Chosen-Garatsu refers to the combination of rice straw glaze and amber colored glaze on a single form. The rice straw is most common as the upper glaze, and during firing it bleeds into the lower amber glaze in exciting and appealing ways. Chosen-Garatsu, meaning Korean Karatsu, was a term originally used to describe all types of Karatsu ware. There is no example of a Korean piece with this type of glaze pattern however, and this type of glazing technique is thought to be unique to Karatsu! Herein lies one of the paradoxes in the development of language that the least Korean type of Karatsu ware is the very type now known as Chosen-Garatsu. As for this glaze combination in which the two glazes are trailed freely over the body of the pot in a dripping pattern, some experts believe that this type of trailing was an attempt to imitate the hidasuki (fire-cord decoration) marks of Bizen pottery.

Hori-Garatsu refers to a type of straight sided tea bowl with a deeply incised crosshatch pattern. Such Hori-Garatsu ware is sometimes also decorated with under glaze iron oxide. The glaze is typically feldspathic.

Mishima-Garatsu is a type of ware with delicate stamped designs filled with white slip, with the excess then being wiped away. It is relatively uncommon, as the painstaking ecoration is somewhat at odds with the usually faster production methods of Karatsu. Over the slip pattern, a clear glaze is usually used. At the kiln where I worked in Japan, we made a limestone type of glaze using finely ground sea shells as the main ingredient, as the clear glaze. Mishima-Garatsu is so named because of its resemblance to the regular rows of print on a calendar printed in the town of Mishima.

Oku-Gorai is used to describe certain Plain-Karatsu tea bowls that were once thought to have come from Korea. Subsequent archeological investigation has shown them to be of Karatsu origin. They are undecorated, and are glazed with a simple glaze using local feldspar.

Seto-Garatsu refers to ware with a light colored clay body and a cream-colored glaze, fired in a relatively oxidized atmosphere. It is so named because of its resemblance to ware from the Seto area of Japan.

Bizen-Garatsu refers to unglazed Karatsu ware, and is so called because of its resemblance, since it is unglazed, to Bizen ware. Since the Karatsu clay and firing methods are quite different from those of Bizen, the similarity ends here. The Karatsu kilns are fired with wood in usually less than 24 hours, just enough to reach a temperature to bring most glazes to maturity. The rough Karatsu clay also is quite different from the less refractory, very smooth Bizen clay, and which is fired slowly for several days to achieve an impermeable surface.

Other types of Karatsu ware include Oribe-Garatsu, exhibiting patches of Oribe green amidst an underglaze oxide design, and Kenjo-Garatsu, a more delicate style of Karatsu often decorated with detailed designs in underglaze cobalt. There are still other types of Karatsu glazes, but for now let us limit ourselves to the ones included here.

Characteristics of Karatsu Ware

Both Old Karatsu and contemporary Karatsu ware are prized for certain characteristics, the value of which may take time and experience to appreciate. Let me mention the most prevalent characteristics here.

"Kairagi" is the term used for the crazing of a glaze on the lower portion of the body, around the foot, where the glaze did not adhere well to the piece. What is considered a fault in the world of western ceramics is thus a sought after effect in Karatsu. This effect is especially prized on tea bowls, and is the result of a) the already tentative adherence of the glaze (because of the chemical composition of the raw materials themselves) to the clay body being accentuated in the trimmed area of the form, and b) glazing the piece when it is not completely dry. Since the lower portion of the form dries less quickly,, it is less able to absorb the moisture from the glaze, resulting in poor adherence of the glaze. This poor adherence lends itself to several desirable 'accidents' such as kairagi, and otherwise pulling away of the glaze in sometimes attractive ways. The practice of glazing a piece before it is completely dry stands as a prime example of the way working hurriedly influenced the resulting aesthetic.

"Kannyu" means crackling of the glaze. These crackles mean that as the piece is used, it may absorb oil from the hands and be stained by the contents it holds. Over the years, the piece itself changes. This 'aging' of the piece is heartily valued.

"Chirimen kodai" refers to Karatsu clay's crepe effect inside the foot. Karatsu ware is thrown clockwise and trimmed counterclockwise when the piece is still quite soft. This practice accentuates the granular nature of the clay, creating the feature known as chirimen. It is further accentuated by the practice, continuing to this day, of leaving the foot unglazed. The practice of trimming pieces when they are much harder, especially in the case of porcelain clays, means that one is in effect polishing the bottom of the piece. In the Karatsu style, ware is trimmed at a very moist stage and very quickly, to avoid this type of polished look.

"Tokin" is an endearing kind of point, like a helmet or protruding navel, inside the foot ring. Various trimming 'faults' such as "mikazuki kodai" (crescent moon shaped foot ring) caused by trimming a piece when it is not quite centered are appreciated as aesthetic highlights.

A "takefushi kodai" or bamboo node foot ring, is the norm in Karatsu ware, and is an aesthetic and practical feature. It allows for a strong grip on the piece when glazing, and also provides visual elevation.

From this incomprehensive list, we see that certain 'faults' are treated as desirable and valid aesthetic features. The process of making the piece is not concealed; it stands as a spiritual and physical account of the human hands that made the piece, and the fire to which it has ultimately been submitted. Again, to quote Richard Wilson, "materials and methods are to be cooperated with rather than coerced, and unexpected results are not only delightful but suggestive of new style."

In my own work today, I try to honor the tradition in which I was trained while continuing to move forward.

For more information, or if you have questions, please contact me.
Thank you for your interest.