Ouji Kiln Ash Glaze Bowl / 王子窯 灰釉器
Made using high-quality clay from Seto and shaped through the skill of experienced artisans, Ouji Kiln’s bowl is both durable and long-lasting. The ridged interior is designed to resist wear, allowing it to be used comfortably over many years.
Shino ware fired in a heavy-oil kiln develops a beautifully melted glaze with a gentle lustre, giving the piece a soft, rounded impression. (A heavy-oil kiln fires ceramics at very high temperatures, allowing glazes to melt deeply and naturally. This firing method gives Shino ware its gentle lustre, soft surface, and warm, rounded character.)
About Ouji Kiln - 王子窯
Located in Seto, one of Japan’s Six Ancient Kilns, Ouji Kiln stands within a region where pottery has been made continuously for more than a thousand years. Seto has long been known not for decorative or ceremonial ware, but for vessels created for everyday life — bowls, plates, and cups shaped for daily use. When we visited the kiln in person in November, what stayed with us most was a sense of presence. Standing before the large kiln that anchors the space, its scale and quiet weight made time feel layered. It was impossible not to imagine how many firings it had witnessed, how many hands had loaded and unloaded it, how many meals its work had eventually reached. The history did not feel distant or preserved behind glass; it felt quietly alive. In the space itself, in the tools, and in the steady rhythm of work, there was a feeling that generations before had stood in the same place, working with the same intention — not to create something extraordinary, but to create something that would simply be used, again and again.
Today, Ouji Kiln is carried forward by a younger generation of the family, led by 加藤 創也 (Soya Kato), yet the history remains clearly in front of them. Rather than attempting to reproduce the past, the work continues in a natural, evolving way — still entirely by hand. Forms are gently refined, proportions subtly adjusted, and pieces shaped to suit modern life while remaining deeply rooted in tradition. Each vessel is made slowly and fired with care. What moved us was how this continuation felt neither forced nor nostalgic. The work does not abandon history, nor does it cling to it. Instead, it allows tradition to remain relevant by letting it live through hands that understand both what has been inherited and what must quietly change.
The craft of Ouji Kiln reflects Seto’s long relationship with clay and glaze. Using local materials and traditional firing methods, their pieces reveal subtle variations in surface and colour — soft whites, muted greys, and earthy tones shaped by the kiln rather than controlled by uniformity. Glazes move naturally, sometimes pooling or thinning, leaving behind quiet traces of the firing process. These details are not decorative effects, but honest outcomes of handmade work. They speak of time, heat, and touch — reminders that each piece has passed through human hands, shaped by experience rather than machinery.
As the whole piece is handmade in Japan, slight irregularities in size, glaze, colour and texture might occur and reflect the nature of the artisan product.
■ Each purchase includes one (1) Bowl in a cardboard box.
■ Hand-made In Seto, Japan
■ Material: Pottery
■ Size: 15 cm diameter x 7.5 cm Height