Arita ware, Supervised by Shingo Oka, Somezuke Four-ridged Small Plate 10.5cm [3 Patterns]

A versatile small plate, supervised by Shingo Oka, that adds color to your dining table

Excellent versatility and usability

This versatile small plate fits into any daily scene, whether for small side dishes, condiments, or sweets. It proposes a uniquely Japanese way to enjoy tableware, adorning your dining table with small plates.

A miraculous collaboration

The desire of ceramist Shingo Oka to have "more people use his pottery" is combined with the "high skill x stable production capacity" of a kiln with 200 years of traditional techniques. This is a very rare fully supervised product in the industry, where Mr. Oka himself thoroughly supervised everything from design, ceramic clay and glaze blending, to painting and glazing guidance.

Quality born from skilled craftsmanship

Despite being mass-produced, it is made through a painstaking process to maintain the warmth and high quality of artisan pieces.

• Forming (Pressure Casting): This technique involves injecting "slip (liquid clay)" under pressure into a specialized plaster mold with irregularities. It is mainly suitable for forming irregularly shaped vessels.
• Trimming (Shaping): After drying, craftsmen trim the piece to achieve its final shape. This is a crucial step requiring skilled techniques that affect the finish of porcelain.
• Bisque Firing: The pieces are slowly bisque fired in a 920-degree kiln for two days.
• Painting and Glazing: Under Mr. Oka's guidance, craftsmen hand-paint the underglaze. Afterward, Mr. Oka's specially blended glaze is applied using precise techniques as instructed.
• Main Firing: The pieces are slowly "reduction fired" at a high temperature of 1300 degrees for three days to completion.

"Free and dynamic sometsuke" of Early Imari

What is Early Imari?

It refers to Arita ware fired between 1616 and the 1650s, characterized by glazes that imitate the white porcelain of the Joseon Dynasty. Pieces from this era, about half a century before the completion period, often feature free and dynamic forms and painting, possessing warmth and deep flavor.

Reproduction by hand-painting

The beauty of the "free and dynamic sometsuke" characteristic of Early Imari has been beautifully reproduced in modern vessels by the hands of skilled craftsmen.

Ceramist Shingo Oka

A popular artist who creates pottery based on a unique "refined sensibility" that matches the contemporary atmosphere, while being mindful of masterpieces from older eras such as white porcelain (Joseon Dynasty) and sometsuke (Early Imari). He is known for his diverse expressiveness, including white porcelain, Karatsu, Oribe, aka-e, and classical patterns.