The colossal chawan is an ode to Attack on Titan, and a celebration of ceramics in 2024. I wrote a piece about Shino and Oribe ceramics about 3 years ago. Since that time I’ve collected a few important pieces and learned a considerable amount more about the region, and have even had the chance to visit it in person.
The article was mostly about the history of Mino Pottery, it’s worth a read. You can view it here: https://www.sommerier.com/?p=2451

This tea bowl was made by Kato Toyohisa, a Mino potter renowned for his works since 1975. His works (like those of Yamane Seigan in Hagi) have a power to them that really resonate with me. If any of you reading this are an anime fan, I’d like to compare this bowl to the colossal titan from Shingeki no Kyojin (Attack on Titan). I made a short video from one of the colossal titans iconic scenes for your viewing pleasure. If by chance you haven’t seen Attack on Titan, it’s one of Japan’s great works of the modern age.

Well, the white bits you can see on this bowl are made from feldspar. Feldspars are crystals that are pretty abundant in the earths crust, in certain rock formations they’re easy to find. Feldspars were ground up and used to make a glaze applied to this bowl. Prior to the feldspar getting there, the bowl was brushed or dipped in a high iron clay wash, which oxidized red in the kiln. Some of that high iron clay was added into the feldspar glaze as well, resulting in those blush red marks. Ah, you love to see it. It’s truly remarkable.

This bowl is for sale, though it is used. I don’t believe in owning treasures like this and not using them.