Photo: Bytemarks / Flickr

The tea ceremony and Zen Buddhism in particular had a strong influence on the ceramics of Japan in the 16^th century. It was during this time that tea masters and tea enthusiasts collected items that helped focus their attention on the beauty of ‘the natural and simple’. Sen no Rikyu, a great master, commissioned Chojiro to make and fire tea bowls. Chojiro was a tile maker and his rustic bowls had the desired effect – he was later given a ‘raku’ seal.

Chojiro’s Raku seal

Chojiro’s tea bowls were formed by hand and were chunky cups that were quickly fired after being dipped in black or red glaze. The bubbly glaze led to a pleasant sensation on the lips when drinking tea while the thick walls of the cups prevented the hands from the heat of boiling water.

Due to the success of these tea cups, a leading statesman at the time named the new style of pottery ‘Juraku’. The statesman, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, gave Chojiro a seal in the shortened form ‘raku’. Chojiro took ‘raku’, which means ease or joy, as his family name.

Today, the Raku family pottery can still be found in Kyoto.

Raku in the West

The British potter Bernard Leach introduced the raku technique to the West after returning to Britain from Japan in 1920. The technique was quickly taken on by studio potters for several reasons. Fuel costs are low as raku calls for the firing of glazes at low temperatures – and the equipment requirements are minimal. But more importantly, raku allows for a large spectrum of colours and effects.

Raku clay bodies are mixed in a ratio of one to two with ground mineral tempering ‑ like sand or quartz. This opens up the structure and reduces the amount of water in the clay.

Tags: hobbies, home decor