Sake cup (guinomi) c. early 21th century

This sake cup, or 'guinomi,' was made by Takeuchi Kimiaki, who worked with clay to coax out these subtle tones. It's got this amazing mottled surface, a kind of pale green that feels mossy, like something you'd find in a forest. I'm imagining Kimiaki in his studio, working intuitively, coaxing the clay. Maybe he was thinking about the earth, the way colors shift in nature. There's something so elemental about the medium—earth, water, fire—and the way he’s used it. The rim has these dark green drips, like a glaze gone wild, creating these rhythmic, almost musical marks. It reminds me that all artists are in conversation across time, inspiring each other, and working with materials that have their own kind of agency. Creating art is a form of expression that embraces ambiguity, opening the work to endless possibilities.