FUJIWARA (Corttinuwed_fram previous page}

I think tt is difficult for many of us in the West to realize
the reverence and importance of potters in Japan. In
his comparisons of cultural attitudes towards pots |
was reminded that the established tradition of pottery
and its place in Japanese society spans thousands of
years. Along with a video of the Bizen process which
to many seemed very labour-intensive, Mr. Fujiwara
explained the extraordinary process of the clay prepa-
ration, a mixture of several types of clay from various
depths beneath the fields around Bizen, All the clay
is hand processed (dried. pounded, slaked, stiffened)
and cleaned by slicing clay blocks and picking out the
stones. Some apprentices will spend three years (of
their ten year apprenticeship) just preparing clay.
When asked why so much effort was spent preparing
the clay, Mr. Fujiwara replied that the clay won't be
taken for granted, and it is this indigenous clay that
makes Bizen ware unique [some of his clay will cost
about $30 a pound). In spite of the exacting methods
of processing, the clay will often crack during drying
or firing or will collapse on the wheel depending on the
form. It was interesting to see in the video large jars
drying with strips of cloth or paper wrapped around
the belly of the form to keep the pot from collapsing.
I have seen photographs of the same technique in
traditional Southeast Asian and Middle Eastern pat-
teries and became aware of how universal the clay
forming process is and how the many similarities in
working within the limitations of the materials evolve.
In Bizen all the pots are unglazed and single-fired in
wood-fuelled kilns over a period of days and depend-
ing upon placement in the kiln, a variety of effects
develop from the wood ash falling on the pots. Mr.
Fujiwara maintains a wood lot of red pine for the firing
of his kiln.

Of the several insights Mr, Fujiwara often repeated
was that to grow as a creative artist a person has to
always have a hunger for good and honest work, not
just for pots but for food, or painting, or nature, and
through perseverence, a person's work will lead to an
enlightened fulfillment in spite of hardships. A per-

son's belief in their abilities and potential was neces-
sary for creative growth, | am sure We were very
fortunate in having Mr. Fujiwara here because he has
avery hectic schedule in Japan and docsn’t manage
to give very many workshops.

iwould like ta thank Keith Fedorukand Consul Honda
of the Japanese Consulate for this opportunity, Jan
for the attention to the organizational details, Tam for
coordinating with the College, Lluis Riera and the
Burnaby Art Centre for the clay, David Lloyd for the
great job translating, Jean Fahrnl for hosting the
dinner, Hiro and all those who helped with the dinner,
the many other volunteers, and the people who at-
tended the workshop.

Sam Kwan

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