Accession Number
2010/1.210

Title
Box with Lid

Artist(s)
Kōyama Kiyoko

Object Creation Date
circa 2000

Medium & Support
stoneware with natural ash glaze

Dimensions
4 1/8 in x 7 3/16 in x 7 5/16 in (10.48 cm x 18.26 cm x 18.57 cm);1 3/8 in x 7 3/16 in x 7 5/16 in (3.49 cm x 18.26 cm x 18.57 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of the artist

Label copy
Recent Acquisitions Part II
March 31-August 5, 2012
Kôyama Kiyoko
Japan, born 1936
Box with lid
Heisei Period (1989–present)
circa 2000
Stoneware with natural ash glaze
Gift of the artist, 2010/1.210

Subject matter
This is a container with a lid. The artist, Koyama Kyoko, struggled as a female potter in a trade dominated by male artists. She received recognition when she discovered a way to revive the forgotten techinique of natural ash glazes, which are commonly used in her work.

Physical Description
This ovular box, although flat on the bottom, has a lid decorated with curved ridges and protrusions that arch across the surface. The entire exterior is speckled with tiny craters, breaking up the illusion of a perfectly smooth surface. The ash glaze decorates the lidded box with an earthy brown color. The glaz pools in the valleys of the lid and small craters throughout, creating areas of darker hue. The meeting of the lid and box body is not a straight line, but rugged.

Primary Object Classification
Ceramic

Primary Object Type
box

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
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Keywords
ceramic ware (visual works)
containers (receptacles)
pottery (visual works)
stoneware (pottery)