These delicate ‘sukashi’ plates were completed by ceramicist Tomoka Nomura in her studio near Kasama. Sukashi is a Japanese word for an open, transparent section - and that is the case for these plates with a carefully created pattern of holes running within them. The surface decoration is achieved by ash glaze created from the ash of wood used to heat Nomura’s studio.

This is the small version of the plates in this series, and is 6.5cm high with a diameter of 20cm. It weighs around 375g.

Tomoka Nomura began her career in ceramics under the tutelage of Tatsuzō Shimaoka in 2003. One of the very few potters in post-war Japan to be recognised with ‘living national treasure’ status, the charismatic influence of Shimaoka can at times be seen in Nomura’s work.