Sneaker pot
The artist created this masterpiece from tubular clay because the texture of a shoestring could not be emulated by using a mold. The soles and the inside of the shoes were also glazed, and he struggled to find a way to make them bond in the kiln.

 

GAS MASK POT
Ryuzo 7th dared to create a pot in the form of a gas mask, despite its negative image, “To symbolize our memory of the pandemic once it is a thing of the past.”

 

 

Ryuzo 7th’s Journey in Search of New Traditions

 

Today, Shibukusa Ryuzo Pottery is run by the second son, Tetsuhito, who is now Ryuzo 7th, and his older brother, Ryuhei, who is in the planning side of the business. The first maxim they learned from Ryuzo 6th was, “To create is to hypothesize, experiment, and verify, then repeat the cycle.” For example, with kiln firing, they must feel the difference in air pressure and weather conditions, then hypothesize, experiment, and verify accordingly. All the clay and glaze are also produced in-house through hypothesis, experimentation, and verification. It is quite time-consuming, but to survive as a pottery studio, they continue creating and undergo a series of untested and painstaking efforts.
Notable recent works include the Sneaker pot and GAS MASK POT shown here. Both are pot art pieces with drainage holes at the bottom.