I had a little espresso pick-me-up this afternoon ('cause it was that kind of day), and I chose myself this particular cup, not like anything else in my collection. It's Japanese — that itself is not unique; I have a number of Japanese demitasses, and they're consistently among my favorites: exceedingly delicate, lovely colors, simple balanced designs — but this one's different: the vivid rough-brushed rust-orange backing and the vibrant, almost violent dragon, with its relief texturing.

And this particular demitasse has an extra little surprise. Voila!
And this particular demitasse has an extra little surprise. Voila!
Yep, a portrait — the former Empress of Japan, I'm informed — only visible when the bottom of the cup is held up to the light. I owned this demitasse for years and had absolutely no idea of its secret until Ms. Mary revealed it to me. Super cool, n'est-ce pas? (And the means of rendering the portrait is also super cool: it's not painted on or any such thing. The portrait is simply rendered in relief in the porcelain itself: dark areas — the hair for example — are thicker porcelain; light areas— the face, the background — are thin porcelain. So the light just shines through in various degrees, rendering hues of darkness and light. Portrait rendered, and with such subtlety. Awesome.)
really like this one! wunderbar! (to throw yet another culture into the mix!)
ReplyDeleteThat is so very cool! I love the color of that cup, too.
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