* 21-10-1942 Emmen / Holland.

"Although the result is called "raku", it is related to the Japanese tradition only in incept, in that it offers our western culture in sight into the oriëntal concepts of beauty ..... "As done in America, we have no correct name for it" (Paul Soldner).

Within this quotation I find myself comfortable when I keep myself busy in my Western European way with "Raku".
Experiencing Raku is contemporain and is determined in the common culture, however it has relational aspects with its Japanese sources, as where it concerns feelings of beauty, astonishment, joy, peace and happiness.
With specially mixed clay of Brunssumer (Dutch Limburgian Stoneware Clay) and Westerwalder (German Ball Clay) origine I throw huge cylindrical and round forms, which offers me a great surface to decorate with lines, colors and flat ornaments.

I try to give a personel identity to the round forms which are generated at the throwingwheel by creating special effects at the shoulder of the pot and at the rim. The surface between bottum and rim is specially edged with decorative frayed claylines. I prefer it for its total presentation of form and decoration. The great surfaces give me the opportunity to develop whimsical, accidentical, yet aimed patterns, influenced by thoughts of warm and cloudy landscapes.

The proces of firing and reduction has its impact on the pattern of the china crackles and the rate of the reductive effects in the colors.
I experience the exciting tensions of the Raku-technique during the firing- and reductionproces when I temporarily give up the command of this proces and leave it to the elements of fire and smoke and water.

It causes the exiting balance between
- "laissez-faire" and "keeping control" and
- " overdone" en "understatement".

The proces of claymixing and - preparing, walking the clay, designing the form and decoration, throwing and production, biscuitfiring, decorating, glazefiring, reducing in woodchips and sawdust, cooling down and cleaning are part of a total proces, accompanied with feelings of
- acceptation, that it went like planned
- astonishment that it has turned into another direction and unespected effects develop
- satisfaction that it went like expected and planned

But most of all realising the feeling that the Raku-character means: of joy, of happiness, of peace and of pleasure.

Bowls and vases, moulded from earthy clay
conjure up a delightful sight for me
and can turn out for both creator and viewer
to be a treasure of timeless wonder.