Page:Brinkley - Japan - Volume 8.djvu/224

 *2. Taizan Yōhei; assumed the business name of "Obiya" and the mark "Taizan" in the era 1716–1735.
 * 3. Taizan Yōhei; distinguished himself by his Mazarine blue enamel, circ. 1755.
 * 4. Taizan Yōhei; manufactured tea and wine utensils; flourished down to 1800.
 * 5. Taizan Yōhei; manufactured not only pottery but also porcelain—especially céladon—between 1801 and 1820—and was appointed potter to the Imperial court.
 * 6. Taizan Yōhei; produced highly decorated articles of pottery and porcelain for Imperial use in the era 1830–1843.
 * 7. Taizan Yōhei; flourished down to 1853.
 * 8. Taizan Yōhei; flourished down to 1870, and exported considerable quantities of faience.
 * 9. Taizan Yōhei; the present representative of the family; a potter of merit, who does not, however, preserve the canons of his art, but manufactures largely with a special view to foreign markets. Much of his faience has found its way to Europe and America, where it is highly appreciated. The pâte is excellently manipulated, the glaze soft and lustrous, the crackle fine, and the decoration, though it frequently errs on the side of gaudiness, is often redeemed by beauty of design and delicacy of execution. Taizan uses enamels on choice pieces only, preferring gold and pigments—especially red—which are more easily prepared and applied. He has revived the pâte-sur-pâte style (Warabi-de) generally attributed to Hōzen, but his success is not signal. The difficulty of temperature in the kiln appears to be nearly insuperable. It is necessary that faience thus decorated should be exposed to the direct action of the furnace, while at the same time the slightest excess of heat has the effect of causing the enamel to "boil," the result being that it emerges from the kiln honeycombed and lustreless.