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Cha no yu

and Its Influence

on Japanese Ceramics

A curve of infinite beauty, a balance of forms, colours that blend harmoniously—that is what we want to look at. But no gazing at the finished object, however perfect it may be, can give the satisfaction that was felt by its creator while finishing it—because then the thing was still alive. Tea people realize the importance of this stage in creation at which a work of art is still alive, craving for the last perfection from its master's hand; and they take this task with its uncertainty and its joy away from the maker and give it to the beholder.

From Eleanor von Erdberg Consten (Res Artium).

Cha fin (tea master) preparing tea for cha no yu. One of the operations of this pastime is the careful ceremonial cleaning of each article as it is put into use. To the left of the server a small bowl for waste water. In front of him on the matted floor a small white bamboo whisk for mixing the tea and a lacquered box holding the powdered tea with measuring spoon balanced on the top. On the lacquered board an Oribe pottery bowl for holding cold water for replenishing the water in the iron hot-water kettle. The large object is a black earthenware fire pot (the "furo" the making of which gave the Eiraku potters their start in the ceramic art world of Japan) with a cast iron kettle for boiling the water. Balanced on the open top of the kettle is a bamboo dipper with which the hot water is ladled over the powdered tea; the small almost indistinguishable object beyond the furo is the iron lid of the water kettle. This form of serving tea is used only in the summer, in winter the "furo" is replaced by a sunken fire box level with the floor mats.

Cha no yu

It is in the making of pottery articles that the Japanese artist expresses in the simpliest and most direct way his love of the material he is working with and his conviction that to be beautiful an article must first be useful. And this idea, we humbly submit, is of value to all peoples.

Before attempting to explain in detail the distinguishing features of shape, colour and design of Japanese ceramic wares it will be well to stop and explain one influence which has moulded Japanese taste for centuries, the aesthetic cult or pastime known as cha no yu (literally "hot water for tea") It is coincidence only that the development of porcelain making took place just at the time that cha no yu played a prominent part in Japanese history, because pottery, not porcelain, is the chosen ceramic ware for cha no yu. However the arti tic taste fostered by cha no yu dictated the form and colour and texture of all forms of ceramics.

The words cha no yu, cha do and chajin are indispensable in the consideration of any form of Japanese art. Simple words "cha do" "tea teachings" and "cha jin" "tea-men" they are packed with meaning for the Japanese, and all but meaningless for Occidentals. For more than three hundred years the tea-men (cha jin) have been the accepted judges of what constitutes good taste in Japanese art and their influence is still felt in the etiquette of the daily lives of the people, in their homes and gardens, in their clothing and in their outlook on life. Even the language has not escaped, for the Japanese word expressive of confusion "mucha kucha" translated literally means "without tea, bitter tea." For many years the word used to denote any and all ceramic wares was "cha wan" or "tea bowl"; and even today common rice bowls are called cha wan or gohan cha wan, literally rice tea bowls.

Tea ceremony, the usually accepted translation of cha no yu, is most unsatisfactory for the words themselves mean only hot water of (or for) tea. Although the cha no yu of today has come to be representative of conservatism and reactionism, it was not so in the beginning. Originally it must have objectified the spirit of progress, even adventure. The designs on the tea utensils in those days were new, the latest importations from abroad. The tea-men of those days were discontents and pioneers, dissatisfied with the crash materialism of their day and its gaudy, ostentatious art.

They went to the other extreme and in revolt they preached the doctrine of beauty in imperfection and the joy of living in harmony with nature. They entertained their friends in surroundings suggestive of poverty, not wealth; drank their tea from bowls that had been discarded by Korean potters; arranged their flowers in crude earthen pots that had been used by farmers to store seeds in; and rigorously kept the conversation at such gatherings away from the glories of war and the admiration of the spoils of conquest, the things uppermost in the minds of the people of that day.

The first teachers of cha no yu were priests of the Zen sect of Buddhism. Their insistence on contemplation and reflection on the oneness of the universe, man and nature, ran counter to the prevailing spirit of war and struggle for military supremacy of their day. It was a time known in Japanese history as the Sengoku Jidai, Civil War Period, when three great leaders Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Iyeyasu successively struggled for leadership, and it was also at this time the first vanguard of European civilization was making its appearance in the Orient. In Europe it was the time of the Renaissance and this spirit found expression in Japan too. Hideyoshi, who loved to clothe himself in colourful garments and who lived in grand dwellings, decorated by master artists, which have never been excelled in gorgeousness of colour and decoration, was fascinated by the teachings of cha do. He became an ardent student of cha no yu and his enthusiasm spread to his generals and retainers. The shortest way to his favour was to present him with something that could be used for the performance of cha no yu, so his followers vied with one another in making things of pottery that would meet with his approval. All of Japan was swept with a mania for "cha ki," pottery utensils suitable for cha no yu. Feudal lords, given their choice between the grant of large tracts of land and a famous piece of pottery, eagerly chose the pottery.

In the estimation of the Japanese the most important pottery for cha no yu is first, the cha ire (tea jars), next the cha wan (tea cups). Under the Tokugawa Shogunate the most precious possessions of the military men were said to be tea jars, specimens of calligraphy and swords, in the order named. Toyotomi Hideyoshi was the first to reward services rendered him by his followers with pottery articles to be used in cha no yu. Tokugawa Iyeyasu and his successors were only too pleased to follow this precedent. Such a high value was set upon these intrinsically valueless things that it became the custom that a cha ire (tea jar) was granted only for the lifetime of the recipient and must be returned on his death. Sometimes the heir was granted the honour of inheriting it.

Pottery articles used in cha no yu. Left to right; deep raku yaki tea bowl for use in winter; shallow Kyoto yaki bowl for summer; brown tea jar cha ire and fan-shaped Kyoto yaki box for holding incense; green porcelain, seiji mono stand for holding the top of the hot water kettle and Shiragiya yaki mizu sashi or cold water vessel.

All this, of course, proved a great incentive to the development of the potter's art and it is an influence still active today for, although the craze for pottery tea things (cha ki) created a situation where fabulous sums were paid for intrinsically valueless things much as did the Black Tulip craze which swept Holland at this same time, in Japan these things continue to bring a high price and are handed down from father to son as heirlooms. The practice of cha no yu continues to occupy the attention of many Japanese of all classes; poor indeed is the family with no knowledge of it. Although it was developed by priests and feudal lords and its best teachers always have been and still are men, it was a part of the education of all ladies of good family. During the peaceful and leisurely times of the Tokugawa Shogunate women began to take an active interest in it and until the Second World War cast its menacing shadow before it and altered the pattern of Japanese life, no young girl's education was complete without one to three year's instruction in its complicated ritual. In girls' schools it was part of extra-curriculum activities and for those girls forced to work in factories or large offices free instruction was provided, often during working hours. Hotels, restaurants and department stores provided teachers for their female help without charge. All men with any pretensions to culture can at least talk intelligently about the subject and many are well versed in the intricacies of its practice. Until the war the sign-manual of a man's material success in life was the construction of at least one room, if not a small detached building in his garden, dedicated to the rites of cha no yu.

Books have been written and will continue to be written on this fascinating subject, but for the purpose of this book we are concerned only with its effect on the ceramic art of Japan. The present-day cha no yu with its inflexible rules and unalterable ritual is not the cha no yu of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. When Japanese ceramics blossomed into perfection in those days the cha jin were the seekers of the new; their ideal was the entertainment of their guests and for this purpose they sought new and different objects and prided themselves on finding beauty in unexpected places. To be able to point out to their guests new and hidden beauty in commonplace things, to delight their eyes; and to be able to relate an interesting story of the finding or making of such a thing to delight their minds, was the endeavour of the early cha jin. It is an essentially Japanese trait to scorn the obvious, the easily understood beauty of a perfect thing and to prefer the subtile pleasure that comes of the finding of aesthetic beauty in imperfection, or in a thing not beautiful in itself but because it fulfilled the purpose for which it was made or because it has answered the need of man for many long years. One of the teachings of cha no yu is to use what is nearest at hand. Theoretically, cha no yu requires only that one clean and prepare the room, put a flower in a vase in the tokonoma (the recessed alcove of every Japanese guest room), boil water and serve one's guests a cup of tea, actually cha no yu enthusiasts spend all their time trying to think of unusual refinements and variations of the accepted routine, and sooner or later they all try their hand at producing a tea cup (cha wan) which they consider answers all aesthetic requirements. This led to the development of a type of pottery which is peculiarly and uniquely Japanese, known as raku ydki.

Although we have said that cha no yu consists only of serving one's friends a cup of tea, and this in theory is all it is, in practice it is far more complicated. The tea used is a specially prepared powdered tea. It is made by pouring half a cupful of hot (never boiling) water on a small amount of the tea powder in the bowl or cup from which it is to be drunk. It looks, and to many Westerners tastes, like spinach soup. It is never served casually, but always in a suitable bowl, very ceremoniously, and in a room set aside for that purpose only. Of late years attempts have been made to adapt cha no yu to European style surroundings, but with slight success. For the enjoyment of this tea its traditional surroundings are necessary. The room should be small, usually only nine foot square, and a garden is mandatory. No paint or artificial colour is used, only the natural colour of wood planed to a satin finish and the golden tan of the reed mats (tatami) on the floor.

Typical cha wan, tea bowls. On the left; red raku yaki, soft thick pottery glazed with a thick orangered glaze and showing the irregular edge so much admired by cha jin. On the right; shallow wide bowl of Seto yaki, with a semi-transparent greenish-yellow glaze unevenly applied to show the unglazed biscuit base of the bowl. The inside of a tea bowl is always glazed, the biscuit is very often wavey and irregular.

Against such a background the various pottery utensils show to their best advantage and the Japanese delight in harmonious contrast can be given free rein. Against such a background a single white camelia in an unglazed pottery jar makes a thing of beauty. Metal, especially bright polished metal, is taboo; only in summer the pot or bowl (furo) which holds the charcoal fire for heating the water is sometimes of iron or bronze, as is the hot water kettle itself. The tea bowls (cha wan), the container for the cold water (mizu sashi), the low-bowl (mizu koboshi) into which the waste water is emptied, the jar (cha ire) which holds the powdered tea and the small box for holding incense (kogo) all are of pottery or porcelain. In the winter a lacquer lid replaces the pottery lid of the water jar. At any season a lacquered incense box and container for tea may replace the pottery ones.

The delicate workmanship of the highly polished lacquer things and the sturdy roughness of the pottery utensils contrast delightfully and each enhances the beauty of the other. Porcelain is not used much for cha no yu utensils (cha ki), its hard white surface and brilliant colours are not much liked by cha jin but the knowledge of multi-colour enamel decoration acquired in the making of porcelain was used to good advantage by Japanese potters in the decoration of pottery for cha no yu. Because of cha no yu the pottery of Japan is more truly representative of Japanese art than is porcelain, which remains to this day pretty much a copy of Chinese or European models.

The aesthetic teachings of cha no yu have created and perpetuated a criterion by which not only the art but the manner of life and etiquette of the people is judged; for "etiquette" (gyogi) in Japan as "decorum" (li) in China is of vital importance in the lives of all classes of people. The emphasis of cha no yu on self control and of concentration on the task at hand has undoubtedly contributed to the mental health of the Japanese but the insistance of cha do on formalism and ceremony has exerted an influence that is perhaps open to criticism. Again, we can find proof in the language, for one word expressive of misfortune or trouble literally translated means "the unexpected." But even in view of such evident drawbacks it must be admitted that cha no yu has been the means of developing a large group of people aesthetically keen and it has enabled the Japanese people to retain their sense of what is artistic and beautiful sufficiently to avoid being overwhelmed by the deadly monotony of mass production.

Bernard Leach, the English artist-potter, on one visit to Tokyo, gave a talk before an interested group of people in which he stated it was his opinion that the teaching and practice of cha no yu had developed and perpetuated the aesthetic sense of a large number of Japanese and that this had protected the ceramic art of Japan.

The names of many of the greatest cha jin (tea masters) are inseparably connected with Japanese ceramics. Few of them were potters and their influence was due to their authority as arbiters of good taste for cha no yu utensils. Beginning with Shuko, who lived in the latter half of the fifteenth century and who was the teacher of Shino Soshin and contemporary of So ami these cha jin shaped the course of ceramic development in Japan

So ami, a retainer of the Ashikaga Shogun Yoshimitsu, who held power from 1444 to 1473, and Shino Soshin, a contemporary, are credited with being among the first to develop the demand for pottery suitable for cha no yu. Shino's name is perpetuated in Shino yaki a product of Seto kilns. These wares are characterized by deep crackles in a soft looking thick cream glaze over indeterminate pictures or patterns drawn in iron pigment on the coarse biscuit. In places the glaze bubbles and becomes discoloured producing red tints about the edges. On many of the pieces the glaze is wiped off to expose the biscuit and part of the painted design. There is a great charm about these wares for they are especially agreeable to the touch. They are still being produced.

Takeno Sho o's real name was Nakamura Shinshiro. He came of a samurai family but as his feudal lord fell with his clan in the Onin war (1467-8) his father wandered masterless for a while eventually settling at Sakai as a tradesman. Sho o himself went to Kyoto as a boy and entered into service with Udaijin Kimiyori. He was presented at court and given the title of Inaba no Kami. He studied Zen Buddhism and became a skillful writer of verse. Later he retired to Sakai. His influence on Japanese ceramics seems to have been through his pupils especially Sen no Rikyu.

Sen no Rikyu, whose name appears so often in connection with cha no yu and its pottery was born into the family of a wholesale fish dealer. His father's name was Tanaka Yohei but he early took the name "Sen" of his grandfather who was an artist and a friend of the Shogun Ashikaga Yoshimasa, becoming Sen Soeki.

The young Sen Soeki was one time commanded to serve tea before the Emperor Go Yozei. But as he had no court rank he was advised to retire and adopt the Buddhist name of Koji (meaning Enlightened Recluse). His Zen teacher gave him the name of "Rikyu." His name was confirmed by Imperial Edict and he is known in history as Sen no Rikyu. The Shogun Hideyoshi ordered Rikyu to revise and put into writing the rules for cha no yu. For many years Rikyu enjoyed the friendship of Hideyoshi but when he was quite an old man Hideyoshi accused him of insolently living in a style above his station in life. At Hideyoshi's order he quietly committed suicide by seppuku. He was seventy one at the time.

Kobori Enshu (1579-1647) was not himself a potter but a tea teacher yet his name is associated with a certain type of pottery made at many kilns throughout Japan. The kilns of Shidoro, Zeze, Kosobe, Agano, Takatori, Asahi and Akahada are known as Enshu's Seven Favourite kilns.

Enshu's real name was Kobori Totomi no Kami Masakazu, his father was civil governor of Fushimi. Enshu also used the name "Soko." He served under Tokugawa Iyeyasu, taking the place.of Oribe as supreme authority in all things relating to cha no yu. He was a poet, a painter and a calligraphist, besides being exceedingly fond of ike bana (the Japanese art of flower arrangement), and his name of Enshu is perpetuated in the Enshu ryu of flower arrangement. In cha no yu he was a follower of the style of Sen no Rikyu. He did much to encourage the production of Japanese pottery by personally investigating the possibilities of the clays of various districts and encouraging the potters of many kilns to make things for the use of cha no yu.

Enshu's Seven Kilns

Shidoro;—established in 1575 by Kato Shoyemon Kagetada. Wares undecorated, glaze of rich black-brown and autumn colours of yellow and brown.

Kosobe;—wares unknown until 1625 when they were popularized by Enshu.

Zeze;—originated in 1630 at the command of Ishikawa Tadatsuna, Lord of Zeze under the direction of Enshu. The wares have golden or reddish brown and purplish glazes over a dark grey fine grained biscuit. These wares are much like those of Takatori and Seto.

Agano;—kilns started by Hosokawa Tadaoki (known also as Sansai) in 1602 when he employed a naturalized Korean potter. At first very Korean in style, the wares later became similar to Takatori wares.

Takatori;—an ancient kiln which developed when Kuroda Nagamasa brought back with him from Korea potters named Shinkuro and Hachizo. Wares have dull coffee brown, yellow or rich purple black spotted glazes and bluish grey flambe.

Asahi;—founded about 1600 by Okumura Jirozayemon. 1645 Enshu supervised Okumura Tosaku in making tea bowls, of light brown or light blue glaze on a coarse biscuit. 1830-1873 a potter named Chobei Matsubayashi produced modern wares.

Akahada;—started about 1580 but discontinued until about 1645 when it was revived by Nonomura Ninsei. The wares resemble Takatori or Hagi pearl grey crackled glaze clouded with salmon pink. Enshu had cha no yu utensils made here under his direction.

Hon ami (written also Honnami or Hon Ami) Koyetsu, born 1557 died 1637, was a direct pupil of Oribe. He was originally a connoisseur of swords but through the study of cha no yu became interested in pottery and became a skillful potter. He studied pottery-making with Jokei the second raku master and was noted for his skill in the use of the bamboo spatula for trimming tea bowls into shape. His grandson Ko ho (1601-1682) known also as Kuchu sai or just Kuchu also made raku wares after his manner. Kuchu's productions are rare and valuable today.

The name of Matsudaira Fumai Harusan (1751-1818) who was the feudal Lord of Matsuye in Izumo Province is of importance in any consideration of Japanese pottery. He was a cha jin but was especially interested in ceramics. For his own use he designed and ordered made certain tea wares; he was fond of well made "exquisite" rather than rugged wares. Another of his contributions to ceramics was the compilation of twelve catalogues listing and describing famous cha no yu potteries.

It was the cha jin, tea devotees, who rescued from oblivion, and taught the satisfying beauty of ancient and excavated ceramic wares overlooked by less discerning collectors and during the ages that cha no yu has been the great national pastime bowls from widely different sources have given pleasure to many.

Among the best known are Temmoku cha wan, bowls which were used for serving tea to monks of the Zen sect temple at Tienmu Shan in Chekiang, China. These bowls were not much admired in China, they were cheap and available but in Japan they are priceless. These are of blackish or bluish brown, a hard thin stone ware, conical in shape with a rather small footrim or base. In China they are called Chien-yao (yao means kiln wares) and were made at Fukien during the Sung dynasty.

Temmoku tea bowl, the so-called yuteki or oil-spot Temmoku. Note the irregular welt formed by the glaze, called maku or curtain formation by the Japanese.

Korean Halauji, or white ware, bowls used in the country of their origin for serving rice at the daily meal are admired by many. These are of thick, greyish white ware of a rather, to the uninitiated, obscure uninteresting flat bowl shape with thick heavy footrim or base.

Another form of Ternmokn tea bowls with the design of the hoo bird drawn under the glaze.

Kurawanka cha wan, is a less well known but very interesting kind of tea bowl of a thick hastily potted ware with a soft thick glaze, decorated in under-the-glaze blue designs drawn with a sure firm hand. The glaze is thick, uneven and pleasant to the touch. These bowls are interesting because they are of pure Japanese origin and have historical associations. At the end of the sixteenth century when Tokugawa Iyeyasu was struggling to establish his power throughout Japan, the boatmen on the Yodogawa River between Osaka and Kyoto furnished him timely aid at a crisis in his war career. In gratitude Iyeyasu granted them and their discendants the privilege of selling food from boats to the pleasure seekers on this river. Because of being signaled out by this honour these boatmen became proud and overbearing. "Kurawanka" is a vulgar or colloquial expression for the more polite "meshi agarimasenka" meaning roughly the equivalent the American "Get your hot dogs here." These bowls at that time were included in the small price of the food offered and were frequently simply thrown overboard when emptied. The custom of selling food in this ware has been abandoned but now fishermen make a living retrieving the bowls from the river bottom.

Oribe

Of all the names mentioned in any discussion of Japanese pottery that of Furuta Oribe no Sho is most often heard. He was born in 1544 and died in 1615, a period when cha do culture was at its best and he is known as Chajin Oribe—that is, Oribe, Master Teacher of Ceremonial Tea. He served under three war lords: Oda Nobunaga, who died at the hand of one of his own retainers just as he had completed national unification after a long period of civil wars; Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who continued the work of unification and who in pursuance of a progressive imperialistic policy died while commanding the invasion of a foreign country; and Tokugawa Iyeyasu whose strong centralizing policy succeeded in completely systematizing Japan as a feudalistic state and enforcing the policy of seclusion. A time also that was a kind of Renaissance in Japan, later to be known as the Momoyama Period.

Typical Oribe shapes and designs.

Oribe was born in Mino, near Seto the ceramic center of Japan. His real name was Furuta Shigeyoshi or Shigenari and he was the son of Furuta Shigesada, called also Kan ami, who had been a priest but who left the orders and became a retainer of Hideyoshi with the title of Gemba no Sho. He served as samurai or man of arms under Oda Nobunaga until that leader's death in 1582. Serving under Hideyoshi, Oribe was created a daimyo, or feudal lord, in 1585. In this capacity he was put in charge of a castle in the neighbourhood of Kyoto. It was at this time that he made the acquaintance of Sen Rikyu and became his pupil in matters concerning cha no yu.

In 1585 Hideyoshi held his famous tea party at his palace of Ju raku and many great tea masters attended. Although one of the most important pupils of Sen Rikyu, Oribe was at that time but little known. On the death of Hideyoshi, Oribe joined the forces of Tokugawa Iyeyasu. In 1610 he became the tea teacher of Hidetada, son of Iyeyasu and second Shogun. It was then that his position as tea master became established. Daimyos, small and great, competed with one another to become his pupils and in building houses for cha no yu according to his designs and in acquiring art objects which met with his approval. Consequently his taste was predominant at this period.

In 1614 there was a decisive battle fought between Hideyori, son of Oribe's former master Hideyoshi, and Hidetada who was both his master and his best loved pupil. Oribe fought on the side of Hidetada. He visited different camps to entertain the leaders with out-door cha no yu behind bamboo barricades. One time he was so absorbed in looking for material, from which to make a tea spoon (cha shaku), among the bamboo of the barricade that he was seen by the enemy and wounded. The war ended in a truce and while the two shoguns, Iyeyasu and Hidetada, met with various feudal lords to discuss new strategy a retainer of Oribe's as chief conspirator of a group of dissenters tried to set fire to the streets of Kyoto in order to attack the Tokugawa forces. The plan was discovered and the conspirators were taken prisoners. As was Japanese custom, Oribe though ignorant of the treason, was held responsible for the acts of his retainers and he was ordered to commit suicide. This he did, without unnecessary protest, in a quiet and seemly manner. Like his master in cha do, Sen Rikyu, Oribe died a tragic death. Oribe and Rikyu were alike in many respects but while Rikyu made cha no yu monasterical because he was a medievalist at heart, Oribe made it social because he was at heart a modernist. Although Oribe died by his own hand at the command of his Shogun, he had lived man's allotted time of "three score years and ten" and he had lived at an exciting time in Japanese history. His lot was cast with military men and he followed them in their battles but he was basically a man of peace and he was more concerned with the shape of the tea cup he used in the lull of a battle than with that battle's outcome. His lifetime spanned the turn of the seventeenth century, a time in which all the world was astir and Japan felt the repercussions of expanding Europe. Portuguese, Spanish and Dutch ships reached its shores, bringing new ideas and new things. That Oribe was fully aware of these things is proved by his designs and some of the pottery objects he caused to be made for him. Pottery candle holders in the shape of Hollanders, the Dutchman's long stemmed pipe, bits of European woven designs in his own designs, etc. attest to his interest in what was new and modern. Perhaps it is because of his so typically Japanese awareness of the new culture that his hold on the imagination of his fellow Japanese has been so strong, for even today three hundred years after his death, his spirit continues to exert an influence on Japanese ceramics. Oribe wares are divided by Japanese experts into three classes: Black (kuro oribe yaki), Green (ao oribe yaki) and Red (aka oribe yaki) though it is difficult for the foreigner to separate one from the other. They all have the usual dark green glaze on a portion of the article and the rest of the surface is covered with thick grey glaze on the Black and Green types, and a reddish brown glaze on the Red type. This division of the surface of an article into two kinds of decoration is known as "some wake" in Japanese. This green glaze is unique on Oribe wans, it is a lovely soft dark green with the edges of the glaze thinning out into peacock blue and purple-red. Under the lighter grey or tan glaze can be seen a very sketchy design done in bold free strokes in an iron brown pigment. The general appearance is of refined elegance and a close inspection reveals unsuspected beauties in the colour gradations.

Oribe yaki; pictures reconstructed from remnants of authentic old wares.

Oribe wares are quite distinctive as to shape also. It is doubtful if he ever gave his approval to a perfect or regularly round dish or cup, he seems to have preferred bent or dented shapes which appear to have grown that way rather than to have been made by the hand of man. However, his wares are always dignified, never bizarre. Square deep dishes, linked rectangular trays or bowls, especially the fan-shaped dishes so popular with cha jin are some of the shapes known by his name. His designs were extremely simple, yet somehow they evoke a sense of elegance; two stalks of rice heavy with grains, three persimmons drying on a sagging line, a couple of blades of grass, or the spokes of a water wheel to suggest a countryside scene.

An amusing porcelain water pot in blue and white.