Raku ware - Raku ware

A type of Japanese pottery. Raku ware can be broadly divided into Raku ware as a general term and Raku ware as a proper term. The general term Raku ware is a type of sansai, made by hand-kneading and painting a soft clay base with lead glaze, and is low-temperature glazed pottery fired at a flame of around 800℃. This also includes the meaning of pottery for pleasure, and it is widely loved as a hobby pottery.

As a proper name, it refers to Raku ware, a tea pottery kiln in Kyoto. During the Momoyama period, when it was first produced, it was called Juraku ware, and later came to be called Raku ware. It is speculated that it may have originated from the Oniwa ware of Jurakudai, which Toyotomi Hideyoshi began building in Kyoto in 1586 (Tensho 14). Raku ware, whose founder was the tile maker Chojiro, became known in 1574 (Tensho 2), and in 1586, a description of a "Sōeki-style tea bowl" was found in the Matsuya Kaiki. This can be said to have embodied one symbol of tea bowls suitable for the wabi tea ceremony, when Sen no Rikyu (Sōeki was the pen name) had Chojiro fire a tea bowl that he had admired. The bowls were uniquely semi-cylindrical, and the family style was characterized by the use of red Raku glaze, which is made of red clay with a transparent lead glaze, black Raku glaze, which is made of red or white clay with an iron-colored lead glaze and is pulled out of the kiln all at once during firing, as well as green and yellow glazes. In addition to tea bowls, they also fired incense burners, water jars, and tableware, and there is no doubt that their techniques followed those of the southern Chinese tri-color pottery (called Kochi ware at the time), which was imported and highly valued in the 16th century.

In the early days of the Raku ware workshop, in addition to Chojiro, other members such as Sokei, Soumi, Shoemon, Kizaemon, and Tsuneyoshi were also involved, as can be seen in the Raku family documents of 1688 (Genroku 1). Sokei was of Tanaka surname, and his son Tsuneyoshi inherited the second Raku family title, but when Tsuneyoshi died in 1635 (Kan'ei 12), his eldest son, Yoshibei Donyu (commonly known as Nonko), took over as the third, breaking with Chojiro's classics and firing exquisitely famous bowls, developing the tradition of tea bowl making. After him were Ichinyu, Souniyu, Sainyu, Choinyu, Tokuinyu, Ryoinyu, Tanyu, Keiinyu, Koinyu, Seiinyu, and Kakunyu, and the current Kizaemon is the 15th. It is not clear when the Raku family changed their surname from Tanaka to their current surname, but it is thought to have been around the time of the 5th head priest, Soen (1664-1716).

The Raku family's tea bowl production has given rise to tributaries known as wakigama. The grandfather and grandson Honami Koetsu and Koho, who were renowned connoisseurs of tea in the early Edo period, are not considered wakigama. However, among the wakigama that produced the most outstanding Raku tea bowls through their interactions with the Raku family are Tamamizu-yaki, built by Ichinoyu's illegitimate son Yahee in Tamamizu, Ide-cho, Tsuzuki-gun, Kyoto Prefecture, and Ohi-yaki, opened by Ohi Chozaemon in 1666 (Kanbun 6) at the foot of Mount Utatsu in Kanazawa. These two are considered to be representative of wakigama.

[Yoshiaki Yabe]

"Complete Collection of Japanese Ceramics 21: Rakudai-dai" (edited by Taka Akanuma, Chuokoron-sha, 1976)

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

日本の陶器の一作種。楽焼はいわば普通名詞としての楽焼と、固有名詞としての楽焼とに大別される。普通名詞の楽焼とは、手捏(てづくね)で成形し、軟陶胎の素地(きじ)に鉛釉(ゆう)を用いて上絵付(えつけ)する三彩の一種で、800℃内外の焼炎で焼き上げた低火度施釉陶である。これには楽しみの焼物という意味も含まれ、趣味の焼物として広く愛好されている。

　固有名詞としては、京都の茶陶窯である楽焼をさす。創始期の桃山時代には聚楽(じゅらく)焼と称されており、のちに楽焼とよばれるようになった。豊臣(とよとみ)秀吉が1586年（天正14）京都で建立に着手した聚楽第の御庭(おにわ)焼が、その発祥ではないかと推測される。瓦師(かわらし)の長次郎を祖とする楽焼は1574年（天正2）にその活動が知られ、86年のときには、『松屋会記(まつやかいき)』に「宗易(そうえき)形の茶碗(ちゃわん)」の記述が認められる。これは、千利休(せんのりきゅう)（宗易はその号）が好尚をもった茶碗を長次郎に焼かせて、侘(わ)びの茶の湯にふさわしい茶碗の一つの象徴を具現したといってよい。半筒形の独特の形で、赤土に透明性鉛釉を施す赤楽(あからく)釉、赤土か白土に鉄呈色の鉛釉を施し、焼成中に一挙に窯から引き出してしまう黒楽釉のほか、緑釉、黄釉も用いて一家流をなした。茶碗のほか香炉、水指(みずさし)、食器なども焼いたが、その技術は、16世紀にかなり輸入されて珍重されていた南中国製の三彩陶（当時は交趾(こうち)焼とよんだ）に従っていたことは疑いない。

　創始期の楽焼の工房は、長次郎以外にも宗慶(そうけい)、宗味(そうみ)、庄右衛門(しょうえもん)、吉左衛門、常慶らが参加していたことが1688年（元禄1）の楽家文書にみえる。宗慶は田中姓で、その子常慶が楽家2代目を相続したが、1635年（寛永12）に常慶が没し、その長男吉兵衛道入(どうにゅう)（俗称のんこう）が3代目を継ぎ、長次郎の古典を破って即妙な名碗を焼き、茶碗づくりの道統を展開させた。その後は一入(いちにゅう)、宗入、左入、長入、得入、了入、旦入(たんにゅう)、慶入、弘入(こうにゅう)、惺入(せいにゅう)、覚入と続き、当代吉左衛門は15代になる。楽家が田中姓を改めて現行の楽姓を名のる時期は判然としないが、5代宗入（1664―1716）のころと推測される。

　楽家の茶碗づくりは、脇窯(わきがま)とよばれる支流を生んでいる。江戸初頭の天下の数寄者(すきしゃ)である本阿弥光悦(ほんあみこうえつ)・光甫(こうほ)（祖父と孫）は脇窯とはされないが、楽家との交流のなかから楽焼茶碗中の珠玉の名作をつくった家職としての脇窯には、一入の庶子弥兵衛(やへえ)が京都府綴喜(つづき)郡井手(いで)町玉水(たまみず)に築いた玉水焼、また、大樋(おおひ)長左衛門が1666年（寛文6）に金沢の卯辰(うたつ)山山麓(さんろく)に開いた大樋焼があり、この二つが脇窯の代表的存在とされている。

［矢部良明］

『赤沼多佳編『日本陶磁全集21　楽代々』（1976・中央公論社）』

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