Japan Unknown
Unknown: Tea Bowl

stoneware
3.5 x 5 x 5 in.
2015.116
Gift of Stephen and Sophie Mathonnet-VanderWell

Beginning in the 15th century, the aesthetics of the Japanese tea ceremony began to shift away from lavish gatherings in elegant shoin tea rooms of the shoguns, and reverence of antique Chinese objects in favor of a new aesthetic known as wabi. In this context, Korean bowls grew in popularity, praised for their uneven, crackled glazes, aberrations from the firing, and irregularities in form and decoration. Although this bowl was produced in the late 20th century, it's  high foot, subtle asymmetry and uneven surfaces, as well as the spur marks created by stacking the bowls during firing, are characteristic of 16th and 17th century Korean bowls.

Text Panel from the exhibition Chanoyu: Ceramic Art in Japanese Tea Ceremony
March 16 – April 7, 2019
Groot Gallery
Co-curated by students and faculty from Carleton College and St. Olaf College