What Is Raku Ware?
Raku ware (raku-yaki) is a type of Japanese pottery traditionally used in the tea ceremony. It is hand-shaped — never thrown on a wheel — and fired at relatively low temperatures, then rapidly cooled. The result is a bowl of extraordinary tactile warmth: slightly asymmetrical, softly glazed, quiet in its beauty. No other object so completely embodies the aesthetic of wabi-sabi.
The name "Raku" comes from a seal given by the warlord Toyotomi Hideyoshi to the first Raku potter, Chojiro, in the 16th century. The Raku family has maintained an unbroken line of production ever since — the current head is the 16th generation Raku Kichizaemon.
The Origins: Chojiro and Sen no Rikyu
The story of Raku is inseparable from Sen no Rikyu, the tea master who defined the aesthetic of the Japanese tea ceremony in the late 16th century. Rikyu sought a bowl that expressed total simplicity — one that rejected the fashionable Chinese and Korean imports and instead emerged from Japanese earth and Japanese hands.
He found his answer in Chojiro, a tile-maker working in Kyoto. Together they developed the first Raku bowls: hand-formed rather than wheel-thrown, low-fired in small single-piece kilns, glazed in matte black or red, and deeply irregular in form. These bowls were not decorative objects. They were made to be held, used, and felt.
Black and Red Raku
Two dominant types of Raku ware define the tradition:
- Kuro Raku (Black Raku): Fired in a reducing atmosphere and rapidly cooled, producing a deep, matte black glaze with subtle surface variation. Black Raku is associated with the winter tea ceremony and a contemplative mood.
- Aka Raku (Red Raku): Fired in an oxidising atmosphere with an iron-based glaze, producing warm terracotta reds and oranges. Red Raku feels more vibrant and is associated with summer.
The Hand-Forming Technique
What separates Raku from virtually every other Japanese ceramic tradition is the rejection of the wheel. Raku potters shape clay entirely by hand — pressing, pinching, and coiling — using simple wooden and bamboo tools called hera. This direct contact between hand and clay is considered philosophically significant: the bowl bears the full imprint of its maker's intentions and imperfections.
The firing itself is brief, conducted in a small dedicated kiln. The speed of firing and cooling creates the subtle surface effects — the bloom of the glaze, the slight warping of the form — that make each bowl irreplaceable.
How to Appreciate a Raku Bowl
In the tea ceremony, the host will often briefly show the bowl to guests before use. There is a correct way to hold and observe a Raku bowl:
- Receive the bowl with both hands.
- Place it in your left palm; steady it with your right hand.
- Rotate the bowl gently — usually two rotations — before drinking, to observe the full surface.
- After use, wipe the rim carefully and return the bowl for the host's inspection.
The deliberate act of looking — taking time to understand the clay, the glaze, the form — is itself part of the ceremony. A Raku bowl rewards this attention.
Raku Beyond Japan
In the 20th century, American ceramicist Paul Soldner adapted Raku firing techniques into what is now called "Western Raku" — a post-firing reduction process involving combustible materials that produces dramatic smoke patterns. While visually striking, this technique is distinct from Japanese Raku and should not be confused with the authentic tradition. The two share a name and a low-fire ethos, but little else philosophically.
Key Terms
- Chawan: Tea bowl
- Wabi-sabi: The aesthetic of imperfection, impermanence, and incompleteness
- Hera: Wooden shaping tools used in Raku hand-building
- Kuro/Aka: Black/Red