Kawachi Hidetoshi (河内英利): Ceramics from Tokoname
Kawachi Hidetoshi (河内英利) is a Japanese ceramicist who works in the tradition of Tokoname ware. His workshop is named Suiei-gama (翠英窯) and is located in Aichi Prefecture, in the area around the town that gave this ceramic type its name.
Tokoname: One of the Six Ancient Kilns of Japan
Tokoname is one of the Rokkoyō, the six ancient kilns of Japan, whose production dates back to the Heian and Kamakura periods. Characteristic of the region is its iron-rich red clay, the Shudei, which produces a warm, reddish-brown surface when fired unglazed. Tokoname became famous above all for teapots: the clay is considered particularly suitable because it binds the tannins of green tea and changes the taste with every infusion. Storage vessels, vases, and tableware have also been produced there since ancient times.
Style and Surface
Kawachi's works are characterized by organically shaped, deliberately irregular bodies. The surfaces remain rough and textured rather than smoothed, and the glazes create uneven flows, cracks, and drips during firing. This approach - not concealing the randomness of the firing but letting it stand as part of the piece - connects contemporary Tokoname ware with the aesthetic tradition of Wabi-Sabi.
Choosing a Piece of Tokoname Ware
Anyone who wants to buy Japanese ceramics from Tokoname should first pay attention to the surface: unglazed Shudei ware feels different from glazed pieces and changes with use. With teapots, it is worth looking at the strainer and the spout; with drinking vessels, at the wall thickness and the rim. Pieces from ongoing workshop production generally bear a potter's mark on the base.
