The days of a Japanese ceramic apprentice

I'm Mariko Chiba living in Sapporo, Japan and have worked as an assistant of a ceramicist based in Sapporo since 2015.

[mariko-chiba]

~21 days to go until the departure~

Hallo zusammen!  ("Hi all" in German;) )

Summer here in Sapporo is almost over and you’ll start to see signs of the approaching autumn appearing over the next few weeks🍁

Not only the season, but the day of my moving to Berlin is coming close as the title says:)

So no wonder even if you have ever thought whether I speak German or how fluently I speak German or whatever.

To tell you the truth,  my German is poor as hell.  No joke:)

I mean, I've started learning since this March and for the first 3 months, I've got myself absorbed in it more than 2 hours per day.

My doodles during studying might show you how hard I studied German then.   

Jk.

First few months were fine. 

I was full of hope having perfect fantasies of myself speaking fluent German with German people. That was a huge motivation.

Their insane amount of grammar rules distracts me for sure but still,  I enjoy them all.

Guess what, I've already made a German friend even before going!

Amn't I well-prepared? lol

How did we meet?

We were tandem partners on the language exchange app and after becoming good friends, he came to Japan for visiting some of his friends including me and that's how we met.

Beer. Classic.

He, Georg, gave me soooo many tips for almost everything about my new life in Berlin.

Can't wait for having real German beers with him.

Also, I took the German language exam level 5 ( the easiest one tho) a few months ago and the result was...

PASSED:)

[mariko-chiba]

Chilling with my homie

It was a hot summer day and we had a spacious and grassy park in our neighbourhood. Then, why not to have a picnic:)

Cherry blossom season isn’t the only time to roll out your mat on the grass and prepare to share food with your people!

Since two of us met by chance a year ago at the BBQ party, we've hit it off.  

Sadly, my friend, Ai-chan, will move to other prefecture for a new design job so soon, we decided to make time as much as we can to enjoy our limited time together!

So happy we made our outing yesterday, admiring the beautiful nature and simply the moment we chatted over some tasty drinks & food we brought in the open air - to me that is what having a picnic is all about.

Ai-chan mumbling my mum's handmade apple pie. 

While she works as a designer, she draws manga in her spare time. 

Yoshimonmanga

My obsession with soy milk has been crazy recently since I started my (imperfect) vegan diet. 

I love to make my Chai tea very thick in a saucepan first and add a bit of soy milk in my cup right before drinking to see the balance & perfect it. 

I have a few more picnics planned for this summer in Sapporo before moving to Berlin;)

[mariko-chiba]

Visiting Europe ahead of time ~ Day 8 & LAST~Brussel~

※ Previous post

※ This is a series of posts looking back on my trip to Europe Feb 2019.

After 2 hours and a half bus trip from Rotterdam to Brussel,

I had this grumpy look.lol

Not only me but my mum was also tired of moving from place to place in the past 7 days.

This was when we were on the way to accommodation near Schumann station in Brussel.

Oh, why we came to Brussel? It wasn't about visiting studios/someone related to pottery.

Because we had our beloved friend living in Brussel!

↑A month and a half prior to our reunion, we had his piano live performance at my mum's bar.

It was super exciting to meet him again this way and was so kind of him to take us to some nice spots in the town.

Sho Ogushi

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Instagram

~ Looking back on these 9 days ~  

I visited rental ceramic studios/ceramicists as many as I could in every location apart from Brussel for the purpose of getting information that would help me find where to have my studio, where to live, and what I can simply possibly do as a ceramicist.

A rental studio I found in Berlin seemed to meet my needs the most and I contacted a woman who sublets the studio after I was back to Japan.

But it was too late then no single space left for me. ( All 4 spaces were available when I visited tho😂)  

I try to keep in touch with her in case of a chance to get a space but at the same time, been checking other rental studios on the internet.

So far, what I decided for my relocation to Europe is ...

1, moving to Berlin, Germany

2, the departure day ( which is on 11th, September 2019!!!!!! I booked a ticket finally♡ Horayyyyyyyyy)

That's all.  LOL

[mariko-chiba]

Visiting Europe ahead of time ~ Day 7~ Rotterdam ~

※ Previous post

※ This is a series of posts looking back on my trip to Europe Feb 2019.

After taking a break at the pub, my mum and I met up at a jazz bar named "Jazzcafe Dizzy" to finish our night the same as always, listening to Jazz.

The bar had a gig that night performed by young jazz musicians.

↑They were busy rehearsing on the stage. 

It was enjoyable to see the process of how the young jazz musicians try to design their stage by discussing and rehearsing. I'm sure I was a strange bystander. lol

We were too early to get the bar and had to wait for 2 hours to get the gig started. While waiting, I noticed that something about a band member looked familiar.

Jonathan, the bass player in the middle of the photo, is from Singapore and has been in Rotterdam for studying Jazz music.

I had barely seen Asian in the town until I met him so it was relieved to meet someone who has similarities in appearance.lol

Since I've travelled to Singapore once before, we had much to talk about and asked each other what brought us to Rotterdam and what we plan to do in the future. 

If you happen to be in Rotterdam and feel like to listen to Jazz music, check out his gig schedule on his FB!

Jonathan Ho Chin Kiat

Every meeting and encounter makes my day 🙏

[mariko-chiba]

Visiting Europe ahead of time ~ Day 6~ Rotterdam ~

※ Previous post

※ This is a series of posts looking back on my trip to Europe Feb 2019.

↑En route to the bus bound for Rotterdam. Didn't even recognize the green-roof building in the photo was Koninklijk Paleis. I should come back to Amsterdam for sure.

After having a stormy day in Amsterdam, I got surprised for much rougher weather in Rotterdam.lol

My suitcase was blown off by the wind many times and even taking a step forward was hard work. It was this bad, you know.

Just letting you know who haven't heard of the city Rotterdam,

Rotterdam is the second-largest city in the Netherlands which is famous for its vibrant cultural life and some of the modernized and innovative architecture.

Well, this is just a quote from one of those travel websites. 

I could hardly explore the city due to the awful weather so didn't have a chance to see those buildings and stuff.

Also, I'd got nothing to do since none of the ceramic studios/pottery shops I want to visit existed in the town.  

So my mum and I ended up going it separately ( we got tired of being together all the time and needed a break for a little while) and I myself made a visit to the contemporary design fair called "OBJECT". 

I was lucky that the exhibition had just started on the day I moved to Rotterdam. The fair took place in a building that each floor had about 30 creator's booths (if I remember correctly) up to the 7th floor with well-known names as well as established designer brands.

Not only the work itself but how the creator sets up their booth is noticeable.

The hand-made perfume was pretty popular by women and I was having a hard time deciding if I should buy one or not ( ended up not buying it tho).

Take a closer look at the pattern of the dress.

I like this naughty idea tho.

In the evening, while I was having a break with a beer at the pub, the owner somehow gave me a croquette. 

It was a good day after all.

[mariko-chiba]

Visiting Europe ahead of time ~ Day 5~ Amsterdam ~

※ Previous post

※ This is a series of posts looking back on my trip to Europe Feb 2019.

On the fifth day of my trip to Europe, we moved to Amsterdam from Berlin🇳🇱

An eye-catching mosaic chair was appealing to me on the way to a destination♫

The city of Delft is known for its production of this sort of blue & white ceramics which is a symbolic style of the Netherlands' pottery.

We didn't make a visit to Delft though, it seems that only one factory remains now although there were 33 factories at its peak.

Mr Kaneko who's been in Amsterdam for about 30 years! as a ceramicist welcomed us even though I'd contacted him 2 days prior to the visiting.😅

I was so grateful to him for making some time for us.

Once I stepped in his studio, I felt "JAPAN" was in there... If I were to live in Amsterdam I would definitely visit his studio when getting homesick.lol

Anyways, what was interesting the most in our conversation was that he mentioned about the position of ceramics of art in the Netherlands compared to Japan.

Japan has a wide variety of pottery styles which have been made in many regions along with its long history.

And having a wide range of choice for tableware definitely makes people's dining look unique and there's some tableware for specific meals, like

rectangular plate for grilled fish, sushi plate, rice bowl, condiment bowl, steamed egg custard for a little taller bowl with lid, etc.... and btw, Miso soup is definitely served with a lacquer soup bowl in Japan, just to let you know.lol

But nowadays in Japan, a-dollar-shop (100 yen shop) is taking over its rule from the local pottery shop as to where people purchase tableware.

However, I still see handmade-ceramics is not in low demand in many households, no matter what the quality of the products.

Since I have no idea about those kinds of thing in the Netherlands, like how much demand people have for tableware, where they tend to go buy them, how they use them at home and their culinary & pottery history, etc... Mr Kaneko suggested me to learn at University in the Netherlands if I want to start my work in there.

Though I could barely explore both Amsterdam & Rotterdam due to the severe rainstorm which made me realize the Netherlands wasn't mean to be my place, and simply, I don't want to learn from anybody anymore (I've just finished my 3 years and a half apprenticeship).lol

Me waiting for a tram to come. 

Had a listen to a Framenko Jazz at BIMHUIS. ( Visiting Jazz place is our routine every night♫)

[mariko-chiba]

Hot-pot party at home

Writing about my trip to Europe is still half way thru ( shame on me, lazy blogger:)) tho, let me post this that just happened yesterday!

Friends of mine and I threw a party at one of my friends' home, bringing my own-made pot to test if it can be used functionally & practically, and to see their reaction.lol

The pot was deep and big enough that can fully submerge all items of about 10 people.

I was proud that my pot was a centrepiece of the party last night and I was in a special mood while seeing them being busy for dunking, picking, and eating!

Check out if you're curious the process of making a clay pot →

Me on the right with a drunk friend. lol

They all are regular guests from my favourite bar the same as I am.

We had a blast!!

[mariko-chiba]

Visiting Europe ahead of time ~ Day 4~ Berlin ~

※ Continuation from last post

In the noon of the second day of my stay in Berlin, I was happy to start off my day with the HUMONGOUS lunch and a pint of beer!

Every sip of beer made me realize I was in Germany for sure!!🍺

These photos are from the Berlin Wall which is, I guess, the best-known tourist site in Berlin.

Was it ever chilly that day!

You can see the sky in the photo is filled with clouds... it was literally gloomy day ever☁️☁️☁️

  It's hard to believe that the wall had split Berlin since 1961 and at least 171 people were killed trying to get over the wall until 1989, which is the year I was born.  It's been only 30 years since then.

Found inappropriate advertisements right across the Berlin Wall 😅

Just wonder why it has to be here...

[mariko-chiba]

Visiting Europe ahead of time ~ Day 3 ~Berlin~

※ Continuation from last post

It was early February.

We didn't bring many clothes, believing that we were fine with the windy and gloomy weather in Germany. 

Soon after the arrival, we realized it was a MISTAKE and were shivering all day!

(The temp itself wasn't that cold but we weren't just ready for it.)

It wasn't easy to get out of bed every morning, though I never wanted to change my plan.  We came all the way from Japan, you know.

Despite the weather, what made my heart warm was meeting up with people I know! 

 Norbert was an Airbnb host for my first stay in Berlin in 2017.

Since his house had been fully booked, we visited him only for a chat. 

This is when I was about to take a bus to get a rental ceramic studio.

The studio was on the second floor of the building and I had a productive talk up there ( the details will follow later! ).

Now, here comes the night🌛

Our routine at night during the trip is visiting Jazz bar 🍺♫🥃🎶

My mum runs a Jazz bar in Sapporo so no wonder, right?

Marie Takahashi on the left of the photo is a viola player based in Berlin who I met by chance in my first trip to Berlin. I made a visit to where she had a gig to see her.  Their free jazz performance was such an eye-opening and mysterious sounding...!!

Marie Takahashi

Next post will be about my second day in Berlin!! 

[mariko-chiba]

Visiting Europe ahead of time ~ Day 1 & 2 ~Düsseldorf~

As I announced to you before, my mum and I made a visit to Germany🇩🇪, the Netherlands🇳🇱, and Belgium🇧🇪 2 months ago!!

Like I said in the previous post, it was supposed to be a "trip" but I literally rushed across the town in every location for visiting rental ceramic studios and ceramicists so the schedule was pretty tight and we had almost no time for doing sightseeing.

This is going to be a kind of a travel memoir but let me look back on my experiences with pictures taken in each place!

Our journey kicked off in Düsseldorf, Germany🇩🇪

Our first meal in Düsseldorf was not German but Turkish though it was utterly good🇹🇷

Drinking beer in broad daylight is heavenly... 🍺✨

On the last day before leaving Düsseldorf, Michiko Shida on the left of the photo who's a Japanese ceramicist based in Düsseldorf warmly welcomed us into her studio and let us hear the story of her life since moving to Germany.

My first contact with her was nearly 2 years ago that I asked her about the visa I could possibly get in Germany and things like that in the email.

She replied to me very kindly then, so meeting her in person was the long-awaited moment.

Right after saying good-bye to her, we headed to the airport straight away for a flight to Berlin 💨💨💨

To be continued...

[mariko-chiba]

2 different types of blue glaze with gold and silver lids.

[mariko-chiba]

First time to overglaze

3 pieces from last firing at my teacher's studio during my apprenticeship are shown in this post  → 

When I was having them in my hand right after firing, an idea came across my mind. 

"Adding a luster overglaze might make them more cool!!"

Even though I had several opportunities to overglaze my teacher's works, this was a totally first try for my own pieces and it was super exciting.

I applied silver luster with a brush which is more flexible way for any surface than luster pen.

I tried applying gold using a gold luster pen as my teacher had it by chance but I don't think I'll use the pen type again... 

The head of the pen didn't reach to the deepest part of the knob so it was slightly difficult attempt but I managed it.

Luster pen can be a good item for drawing but if you want to cover a surface evenly with luster I strongly recommend using brush which is much more useful and flexible!

Next post I'm going to show you fired pieces!

[mariko-chiba]

Ever since graduation

What do I do after my apprenticeship has ended? ( Check a post about my graduation!→ )

Well, I'm still continuing two works. One's my mum's jazz bar and the other's a teaching job which I started at the same time as my apprenticeship. But still, I have plenty of time doing my thing and planning on my trip coming Feb, and so on.

The thing is that I'm so happy to have time doing anything I wanted to do. I know it'll be much more tougher after setting up my ceramic business but only for now, I think I deserve to be lazy. haha

My mum's and my passports

Speaking of trip, I've decided to go see some rental ceramics studios and Japanese ceramicists over there who're based in its place. 

Where? 

If you're a sincere reader of my blog you'd probably think it's Germany, and that's right.

But guess what, not only Germany but I go to the Netherlands and Belgium as well!

So this is just a "trip" before "emigrating". 

The purpose is to find out which country, either of Germany or the Netherlands, is better for making life as a ceramicist. I was willing to move to Germany before but I happened to find other Japanese freelancer's blogs saying the Netherlands is also one of options for those who want to challenge in Europe same as Germany. This unexpected info intrigues me about the Netherlands, so why not go check?  I'm searching the latest regulations of potential visa I could get and what's also important to know is whether I can be fond of the country so I need to go!

This 9-day trip, I'm going to...

1, Düsseldorf, Germany

2, Berlin, Germany

3, Amsterdam, the Netherlands

4, Rotterdam, the Netherlands

5, Bruxelles, Belgium ( just to meet a friend)

Been a heavy user of Airbnb to book all accommodations in every location recently. So much fun to get along with local people. 

Can't wait for everything!!

[mariko-chiba]

Knowing how it's used and why it matters.

Hello, folks!

You know I've mentioned about my work "Volcano" maybe several times in the past posts. It's because it was my first original work and it took me a long time to reach to that shape and, was a first experience to be purchased by a restaurant (the owner's a friend of mine tho).

I always imagine how my clients use my work before launching on clay.

However, how they use in fact is not always same as I expected.

Ceramicist is a kind of work that never knows how their clients actually use their work after being purchased. Clients are likely to use it regularly or they might just leave it in the shelf and never use. Or they might use your rice bowl as salad bowl... Who knows? 

So I'm grateful to receive feedback both negative and positive that are very valuable as it helps me know what was good and bad on my work. But obviously, it's not easy to get feedback especially negative ones, especially from individual clients.

As long as my work is used at restaurant I definitely go check by myself. Potters have to be responsible for their work even after being purchased. This can be pretty normal work ethic for all potters.

The restaurant I mentioned above had pictures of Volcano taken by a photographer ( a bit photoshopped tho) and here are some.

A friend of mine and I visited the restaurant to check.

The menu looks summery and very Thai-ish!

The staff elegantly lighted a fire on ( sorry I didn't record a video) and right after that what pays off was to see other guests around us whooped with surprise and joy by that.  How delightful that night was.

Oh I almost forgot what date today was.

Happy New Year!!!

[mariko-chiba]

Graduation

I'm thrilled to announce that I've graduated from my apprenticeship last week!!!

Hooray!!! 🎉🎉🎉

To be honest, I never thought of doing this so long... 3 years and a half!!

↑ Scuff on my work table is a trace of repeated clay kneading

Usually, at my teacher's studio, his apprentice assists his work everyday except Sundays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. and after 6 p.m. they can make their own stuff. And also they are supposed to leave his studio in about a year and usually start their pottery business soon afterwards. 

But in my case, my savings was very little so even if I could finish the training I wouldn't be able to start working soon.

For this reason, I'd asked my teacher whether I should work first as an employee at a company or something for years till I get enough money for my future start-up before starting my apprenticeship. It was on my second day at the studio. ( I knew it was kinda late to realize about it.lol)

I sure looked gloomy during the talk as I was scared of losing the chance of learning at his place.  I didn't want to stop my burning passion and he looked thinking same as me. 

And thank God, he suggested me to come to his studio 3 days every week and apart from that I could use my time for making money. Of course I nodded my head in agreement.

That's how I spent last 3 years and half.  Learned half every week and the rest worked.

I could barely hang out with my friends during the years which was a bit stressful tho I could have focused on my study & work instead and have got toughness both mentally and physically.  (I'm on a tight schedule this month for drinking parties as a reaction to the busyness:)) Hooray!

Photos below show before & after of last firing of my last pieces.  

Biscuit pots.

Glazed pieces right before last firing.

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Fired glaze testing pieces. More than Half of glazes turned out to be craps by the result but for sure I found some are diamonds in the rough. 

Definitely, I'm in love with blue.

3 mini pots above were used for glaze testing ( I wanted to see how these 2 different glazes look on slightly big and designed shaped pieces.) so I don't call them my "last work". 

Yet, this very last result of glaze testing surely provides me a clear guideline which way I should go on as an ceramicist.

[mariko-chiba]

Clay pot ~Donabe 土鍋~ Part 2

Part 2.lol

Yep, there's part 1. Check this out! → Part1

So in the part 1, I didn't show you other finished clay pots yet.

This time, I want to reflect here with some photos that what was actually needed to be done in the process. 

This is the most balanced one I think in its appearance & function out of 4 pots I made this time. You can also find another photo from different angle in Part 1 ( very last one). 

And here you can see one with a weird domed part on its lid .↓ 

 Backside↓ 

This most likely happens when you trim excessively.

During firing, only the thin part sinks as it can't defy gravity so finding appropriate thickness is important. 

Speaking of thickness, some people, this could be only in Japan tho, believe that "thin is beautiful and always right" when it comes to tableware.  

I get it but hey, thin means fragile, don't forget!

While there's proper thickness for pot lid, there's also proper thickness for pot body and tea pot and plate, and so on..

Apart from trimming, I think I did pretty well of making them for the first time! Yay!!

Making handles was the most enjoyable time♫

Ready for pot meal party?:)

[mariko-chiba]

Reunion

Ciao guys!

That was actually this September that I headed down to Tokyo to meet my friends Gianni and Amy from Italy. 

It's been 5 years to meet them who I enjoyed being with during my 6 months stay in Dublin, Ireland.

We all were first timers to visit Asakusa that is one of touristy spots in Tokyo.

And here're some photos we took there!!

See you two again!