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by Clayton Amemiya
An anagama is a traditional japanese kiln that produces distinctive pottery. "A finished piece displays the interaction between earth (Clay), fire and wind (flying ash)," says Amemiya. The potter dictates the intensity and speed of the fire, and how he positions each piece in the kiln determines how it is glazed. Amemiya built his first anagama back in 1986 using bricks from an old sugar mill in Papaikou. Since then, he has rebuilt his anagama 3 times. The first was destroyed by an earthquake, the second just didn't generate enough heat. "Each anagama has a soul," says Amemiya. At night when I'm alone tending the fire, I really feel like it's alive." Amemiya graduated from Punahou then earned a Bachelors degree in Asian Studies then a Masters degree in History at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa. In the early 70's while working at the U.S. Consulate in Okinawa, Amemiya met a young potter named Seisho Kuniyoshi, the first Okinawan to be accepted into the celebrated, Hamada Shoji-inspired tradition of Mashiko Ceramics. "His work was so honest and unpretentious...here was a potter who was interested in making humble pieces using local glazes and who wasn't trying to impress anybody," says Amemiya. "His pottery was a revelation for me." In 1975 Amemiya left the State Department and began apprenticing under Kuniyoshi, where he learned the basics of finding, throwing, and glazing clay. Amemiya does only three firings a year. It takes him three days to carefully load his anagama with his clay pieces, then 4 continuous days of firing. The first 24 hours are so critical that Amemiya works the kiln alone without sleep, feeding the anagama small ohia and pine sticks every 5 minutes. Every finished piece is one of a kind, a vessel containing the traditional arts of Japan, the Heart of the Big Island of Hawai'i and the Soul of Clayton Amemiya. |
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13" H x 6" W $450 |
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12" H x 5" W $350 |
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(Wall Mount) 16.5" H x 7" W x 4" D $350.00 |
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(Wall Mount) 13" H x 8" W x 3.5" D $350.00 |
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(Wall Mount) 9" H x 2" W x 1-3/4" D $90.00 |
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(Wall Mount) 13.5" H x 3.5" W x 3.5" D $350.00 |
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| About A.T. Farms |
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please contact A.T. Farms at: Alsflowrs@aol.com or call us at 808.963.6877 Thank you from the Tsuha's for visiting our website   , &
money orders gladly acceptedupdated 1/9/05 |
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