Based in Kumamoto in the central region of Japan’s southern island, ceramicist Rui Fukuda works in the Shodai-ware tradition. Her kiln, Mizuho-gama, was established by her father as part of the revival movement for the Shodai style, and Fukuda is faithful in her use of the local clay and straw ash glazes.

But she also adds her own sensibility in the forms she creates, with bold application of the ‘shinogi’ technique to cut groves in the clay, together with original shapes and colours.

For this reason there is a particular warmth in her ceramics, and a sense toward life as it happens today.

She fires her ceramics in a wood burning anagama style kiln.

This piece is a classic example of Fukuda’s work in shinogi, with strikingly carved vertical lines on the surface. The cup itself is large, with an expansive rim and bulging sides, before it completes with a smaller, yet sturdy, kodai (foot ring) where the clay, collected from the mountain near Fukuda’s studio, is visible.

It can be used for tea, but is also large enough for yoghurt or a decent size café au lait.

It is 10cm high, with a diameter of nearly 10cm at the top and 4.5cm at the base. It is 8cm at its widest point, and weighs 225g.