#bernardleach

[stellabarak]

Adventures with Tenmoku

Tenmoku or Tenmokuyu or even Temoku, is a general term used for a glossy, deep brown iron glaze in ceramics and pottery.

I was introduced to Tenmoku from my early days working with clay, over two years now. Initially I didn't really like it, finding it sometimes too dark, but not quite black, either. The endearing power of the glaze, however, is that it has a depth and range of browns. Depending on how it is applied, it varies from dark brown, to warmer brown, to translucent even when applied thinly. I have used it on many occasions, especially for my coil pots.

Below you can see the results when I used it for my large coil pot, Rosey, (seen below) combined with a commercial raspberry glaze (Mayco). The result was a range of dark purples and browns, that give depth to the surface of the pot. I particularly like the glossy finish as this reflects light and adds an element of sophistication to my work.

The history: Tenmoku glazes originate from Japan, where they have a very long history. Popularised by tea bowls, initially, Tenmoku referred to both the shape of the tea bowl and the dark, glossy glaze that covered these bowls.

Introduced by Japanese monks and priests that came back from China, after visiting the sacred Tianmu Mountain, in the Heian Period (794-1185). At this time, tea drinking was reserved for the rich and the Emperor. With the rise of the popularity of tea drinking, however, by the middle ages (Kamakura and Muromachi periods) so too, the popularity of the tenmoku teabowls spread amongst the larger population.

The example below is typical example of the tea bowl, known for its distinct dark brown colour. This one is from the Kyoto National Museum,

In England, it was introduced in the 1950's by Bernard Leach and the Leach Pottery in St.Ives, Cornwall, after the visit of Japanese master potter Shoji Hamada, at St. Ives. It has been widely used since in function ware, especially coffee mugs, jugs and other tableware.

Below, you can see two examples of Tenmoku, the one on the left, is the Tenmoku tea bowl, by master Shoji Hamada, in the collection of Tate Museum, whilst the one on the left, is currently on display at the exhibition, The Art of the Potter: Ceramics and Sculpture 1930's to now, at the Hepworth, Wakefield and belongs to the potter David Leach, of the Leach family.

It has been criticised often for being old fashioned, however what draws me to this glaze its history and notoriety as well as the fact that it has withstood the test of time and remains, remarkably, a staple glaze for many pottery studios today.

During my residency at Rochester Square Arts, over the summer and autumn this year, I sought to make my own batch of Tenmoku.

Not knowing what I would get myself into, I began my adventures with iron oxides. Having only done a very short course in making my own custom glazes, equipped with raw materials like iron oxide, manganese oxide and fluxes, like nepheline syenite, cornish stone and potash feldspar, I began my very first tests.

The first recipe I tested was of the iconic Bernard Leach tenmoku. This did give some interesting results but I was disappointed, as the application of the glaze was uneven in areas and didn't yield the deep, rich browns I was hoping for.

The second recipe I tried, was from the contemporary Florian Gadsby, the ceramicist based in North London. It comes complete with a YouTube video, for fool-proof testing. 😀

I was drawn to the simple three ingredients of this recipe: definitely a lot of Cornish Stone (85%) Whiting (15%) and quite a bit of the Red Iron Oxide (16%). This one, finally, gave me the sleek, mirror-like surface of the finish I was hoping for. However, for my taste, the 16% red iron oxide is too much. Below, you can see my test tile results of this on B17 stoneware clay and Porcelain.

I found this one way too dark, so I made another test batch, with a recipe from The Glaze Book, by Stephen Murphitt.

FInally, as a last tester I tried my own former teacher's Tenmoku, Chris Crawford, at Sunken Studios.

I am not sure I got the mix quite right here as there are some delicate balances, and this one contains a lot more ingredients than the above. In the classic Bernard Leach, Potash Feldspar is used as the flux, whilst here I do like the substitution of Potash with Nepheline Syenite.

The verdict? I really like the glossy, mirror like finish that the Gadsby's Cornish Stone recipe gives. It also avoid the pin-holing that can occur with Tenmoku recipes.

I think I will settle for this one, with the Iron Oxide at 12% instead of 16%.

Further links and reading:

[jludkin]

Thanks to @gchicco for the feature and lovely interview in the @thecraftsmannewsletter issue 027, potter @josephludkin shares how he lets the environment influence his making, and why he’s more interested in the process rather than in the product. [Link to the issue/article is in the @thecraftsmannewsletter bio] ⁣ #craftsmanship #handmade #makers #pottery #ceramics #kurinuki #bernardleach (at Brockley) https://www.instagram.com/p/CHbMPCAjjwd/?igshid=7cuqmy3yi7r2

[franknemick]

I know what in watching tonite! Repost from @theleachpottery • Don’t miss the final film in our Mingei Film Archive series, ‘The Art of the Potter’, available to watch for free until 1 November! Watch via link in bio. . Digitally remastered by the Mingei Film Archive, this 1970 film is a major final tribute to the lives and work of the founders of the Leach Pottery, Bernard Leach and Shoji Hamada. A perfect way to celebrate 100 years of the Leach Pottery. . Image: Shoji Hamada throwing at Mashiko, film still from 'The Art of the Potter'. . . #leachpottery #leach #pottery #clay #bernardleach #shojihamada #mingei #mingeifilmarchive #film #stives #mashiko https://www.instagram.com/p/CFzhTM0nD_C/?igshid=1cu01r17nr10w

[sereneceramics]

“Hamada Potter” is a well composed pottery book of the works of Master Potter Shoji Hamada. Highly recommended to anyone learning about ceramics. www.sereneceramics.com #apottersbook #pottersbook #bernardleach #pottery #potter #ceramic #ceramics #hyojeong #jeongseong #clay #glaze #pottersbible #potterybook #potterybooks #make #design #production #shojihamada #hamada #hamadapotter (at Sydney, Australia) https://www.instagram.com/p/B6CtlfGgVDU/?igshid=1m9h0g978qcdt

[sageceramics]

Drawing towards the end of our holiday now and I’m looking forward to being back in my little studio. In the meantime here are a few photos from our visit on Monday to The Leach Pottery, including the Japanese climbing kiln which was built by Bernard Leach and Shoji Hamada in 1920 and which was the first of its kind in the Western world.

[mlpshop]

丸善丸の内本店「英国展」にルーシーリーお持ちしています。新入荷の陶器のボタンもあります。写真には写っていませんがビミニ社のガラスボタンも６個ほどあります。是非見に来てください。 #lucierie #lucierieceramic #ルーシーリー #民芸 #民藝 #スタジオポタリー #mlpshop #陶芸　#陶芸家 #bernardleach #バーナードリーチ (at 丸善・丸の内本店) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cdb796GPm6W/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[kurasu-kurasu]

松江の里山で籐籠を作られている作家さんにお話を聞く。籐は機械で割くと簡単だけど、刃物で割くと繊維にならってうねりが出る。そうして作った籐の籠には、糸を手で紡いで作った織物と同じように、なんでもない美しさが出るという。籐を一本づつ割き、素材を作ることにこ���わって作り続けてこられた。 子供の頃に、バーナードリーチにお菓子を買ってもらった思い出話を聞いてて驚く。島根を再訪したら、また「民芸」のアイデンティティを感じる瞬間に出会った。 #暮らすところ暮らすひと #籐籠 #瓶敷 #島根の旅 #民芸 #バーナードリーチ #かんべの里 #kurasuhitokurasutokoro #mingei #shimane #bernardleach (出雲かんべの里) https://www.instagram.com/p/CHg3SrgFOBl/?igshid=m007pvncqdhd

[artisanalgaragegallery]

Illustrated dairy in Japan 1953-1954 by Bernard Leach Master Bernard Leach from England visited a lot of artisans/potteries in whole Japan in 1953-54 then he figured out how it works. He shared Japanese varieties of mingei pottery with drawings such as ,Mashiko ,Kutani ,Onta, etc. Original Book Author : Bernard Leach Translater: Muneyoshi Yanagi Publisher: Mainichi Nespapers published in 1955( Showa 30) Edition: the 1st edition #bernardleach #バーナードリーチ #柳宗悦 #mingeibook #muneyoshiyanagi #soetsuyanagi #pottery #スリップウェア #slipware #artisanalgaragegallery #privatecollection #personalpossessions #personaleffects #artcollection #artsandcrafts #artsandculture #folkart #mingei #garagesale #民藝 #民芸 #藝術 #手しごと #フォークアート #アーティスト私物 #職人私物 #作家私物 #クリエイター私物 #芸術家私物 https://www.instagram.com/p/CDyfMwhlfw4/?igshid=1lk9fk4jgy79h

[ioannesjaeger]

Bernard Leach - Fluted porcelain cup (ca.1965), with Y'ing Ching celadon glaze + ash flecks, impressed BL seal (h7.4, d6.5cm).

[satoshikaga]

民藝展 バーナード・リーチ、濱田庄司を継承する。濱田三代と英国現代作家展 2017

CHARLESTON by Satoshi Kaga

[robertmcphersonantiques]

Leach Pottery in St. Ives in 2018. Bernard Leach’s pottery is still in use. My mother met him there in the 1950s when she was an art student. Aged 16 I bought my first stoneware from his last student Nic Harrison. It was lovely for the two of us to visit the pottery on her last pilgrimage to Cornwall. #leachpottery #bernardleach #cornishpottery #cornishstudiopottery #nicharrisonceramics #nicharrisonstudiopottery #handthrown #potterystudio #stoneware #stivescornwall https://www.instagram.com/p/BvP_mjrHkuX/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1g7rbt88v3m56

[sereneceramics]

It’s Sunday... time to start reading the Bible again. 🤣 🙏 ✝️ www.sereneceramics.com #apottersbook #pottersbook #bernardleach #pottery #potter #ceramic #ceramics #hyojeong #jeongseong #clay #glaze #bible #holybible #pottersbible #potterybook #potterybooks #graysonperry #edmunddewaal #make #design #production (at Sydney, Australia) https://www.instagram.com/p/B3QgB9ygP1Z/?igshid=1gjul4favsvcq

[lukasricharz]

1997 #ceramic #art #pottery #stoneware #slow #handmade #tea #coffee #functionnal #deco #studioceramics #instaceramics #wild #experimental #sculpture #black #poterie #finecraft #gres #porcelaine #bol #unique #handcrafted #geste #empreinte #bernardleach https://www.instagram.com/p/B8wjmAzo3qc/?igshid=hyga1nxwu9ci

[mlpshop]

丸善丸の内本店「英国展」にルーシーリーお持ちしています。新入荷の陶器のボタンもあります。写真には写っていませんがビミニ社のガラスボタンも６個ほどあります。是非見に来てください。 #lucierie #lucierieceramic #ルーシーリー #民芸 #民藝 #スタジオポタリー #mlpshop #陶芸　#陶芸家 #bernardleach #バーナードリーチ (at 丸善・丸の内本店) https://www.instagram.com/p/Cdb796GPm6W/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[woodsettonartpottery]

This Sunday after lengthy Covid delays, we are finally getting round to our Raku (and pit) party to celebrate the centenary of Master Potter Bernard Leach with a bursary from @theleachpottery St. Ives. Watch this space for results and get in touch if you missed out this time and would like to know when we are having our next Raku. RAKU yachts by Geoff Townsend. #raku #rakufiring #rakufired #rakufiringtechnique #rakupottery #rakufire #rakufiredceramic #rakufreaks #bernardleach #bernardleachpottery #theleachpottery #leachpottery #leachpotterystives #leachpottery100thanniversary #leachpotteryshop https://www.instagram.com/p/CTfU-r3oAuI/?utm_medium=tumblr

[satoshikaga]

民藝展 バーナード・リーチ、濱田庄司を継承する。濱田三代と英国現代作家展 2017  Douglas Fitch&Hannah McAndrew

CHARLESTON by Satoshi Kaga