Tea Bowl Kinka-mon | The first-generation head of the Shinemon Kiln [146176]

[size]
Width: 12.2cm / Height: 5.8cm
Width: 4.8in / Height: 2.3in

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This is a work by the predecessor and first-generation master of Shinemon Kiln, Shinichiro Baba (posthumously Shinemon), one of the representative kilns of Arita ware.
It is a masterpiece matcha bowl, traditionally used in the Japanese tea ceremony.

Shinemon Kiln is renowned as a pioneer in the yohen technique, which requires exceptional skill in manipulating glazes. This piece was created by the first-generation master during the period when he and his successor, Kusuo Baba, were establishing the kiln’s identity with yohen works, making it a rare and precious creation. Yohen refers to the transformative phenomena that occur within the kiln, where the glaze’s colors and patterns shift unpredictably, revealing natural beauty and mystery.

The glaze used here is called kinhana-mon (“gold-flower pattern”), celebrated for its crystalline formations resembling golden blossoms. This glaze is achieved by blending various metals into the mixture and firing it, producing golden-brown speckles across the surface. The effect is one of radiant golden flowers blooming across the vessel. Elegant and refined, the kinhana-mon glaze imbues the bowl with a noble and dignified atmosphere, perfectly suited to the spirit of the tea ceremony.



[Potter Profile]
Shinichiro Baba (deceased)

The first-generation head of the Shinemon Kiln
Member of Nitten / Full Member of the Japan Contemporary Arts and Crafts Association / Member of the Saga Prefecture Ceramic Association / Member of the Arita Ceramic Association


[Shinichiro Baba's career is as follows ]
Born in 1924 in Arita, Saga Prefecture
1972: Founded the Shinemon Kiln in Arita.
1979: Selected for the Prefecture Exhibition with "Hexagonal Celadon Bowl."
1981: Selected for the Nitten exhibition with "Oil Spot Tenmoku Large Bowl," subsequently selected 21 times.
1989: Appointed as an art exhibition judge.
2000: Exhibited "Saiun-99" and "Sai-99" at the British Museum in London (Saga Prefecture Ceramic Exhibition).
2004: Exhibited "Saikei" and "Saimon" at the Arita Pottery Exhibition in Germany.

[Main Awards]
1983: Won the First Place Bijutsu Kyokai Prize at the Bijutsu Kyokai Exhibition for "Cinnabar Flower Vase."
1986: Received the Grand Prize and the Contemporary Craft President's Prize at the Contemporary Crafts Kyushu Exhibition.
1996: Awarded the Contemporary Craft Prize at the Contemporary Craft Exhibition for "Akebono no Nagisa."
2000: Received the Full Member Prize at the Contemporary Craft Exhibition for "Rensaku・Sai."