Yohen Crystal Glaze
During my 5 year apprenticeship in Japan, my assignment was to develop new glazes, mainly TENMOKU glazes, in a brown-black color with an iridescent quality. At that time, I completed over 10,000 test pieces. The fifth year of my apprenticeship, I discovered the iridescent glaze on a black background which was my original contribution to the art of YOHEN TENMOKU.
Over the last few years, I have experimented to discover new glazes which combine crystallization with iridescence. I have researched crystal glaze techniques in the United States, Europe, Japan and China. In the long history of crystal glazes, I could find no iridescent crystal glaze. This fueled my ten-year long passion and intent to create an iridescent crystal glaze which has never been made anywhere, at anytime in history. I started testing, using data from my apprentice years. Over and over again, I experimented, completing over 2000 test samples in the last few years. Last year, the newest glaze came out of my kiln. It was the most complicated glaze formula and firing process that I have ever done. I call that newest glaze YOHEN CRYSTAL GLAZE. YOHEN means "stars glistening in a night sky". To make a new glaze is my lifelong passion.
