mmm, yup ... 
mind if i share another cup study?

this one ...
a saucer'less'
handpainted
made in japan
noritake
cup

i found it a couple of weeks ago while treasure hunting
with anna, our son's girlfriend ...
i suppose i have always been drawn to these artful pieces
but was particularly so, this day
since the recent devastation in japan 

have you ever held one of these frangible beauties?
and looked closely at the brisk brush strokes?
i love the little painting ...
how the light shines through and lights up the colours ...
how delicate the ceramic work is ...

it feels so fine to the touch ...
i haven't sipped tea from it's thin lip yet
but i will ...

i decided to do a bit of research
and found many fascinating facts
about this world renown chinaware
and what the various stamps signify ...
this mark, i believe, was registered in 1918
and would be used between the 1920's and 1940's.

.

i just can't stop thinking about the people in japan ...
little did i know when i began this post that just today, almost one month to the day, 
they would experience a huge aftershock ~ another earthquake ...

it makes one really and truly grateful for the many
gifts we are bestowed with every day ...

the best gifts give again ...
which i write about this week at the i.studio
where we are sharing everyday gifts for the month of april

.

artists around the world have come together
to lend aid and support to the people of japan
through various auctions and sales of their wares ...

i have been following the handmade for japan page on facebook
where i learned of a pottery village that suffered immense damage in the quake ...

Mashiko is a pottery village about 62 miles north of Tokyo 
and was seriously damaged in the earthquake.
The 90 pottery businesses suffered an estimated $9 million of damage,
with scores of kilns destroyed and much of the output turned into rubble.

the human loss and suffering ... the material ruin ... it is all so incomprehensible

.

makes me appreciate my artful little cup, all the more

xo

.