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About the Author: MAMMAL
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Landscape Pot, 2013
Maker: Tanya Martin This is the pot I made at the Raku School, Queen’s Road, Bristol (hand built, textured, glazed and Raku fired) in 2013 and photographed in February 2019 when we last had snow in Bristol. I like this photograph because the pot, which I hastily plonked into the fresh snow in the garden and snapped without thinking, reflects its surroundings quite well: white blurry softness of snow with changing texture in light and shadow and soft blue raku glaze changing to white and cream, slightly grainy dark hollows in the snow and carbonised bits of pot that did not take on glaze, springs of thyme emerging from under the snow and dark crackle on the pot. The pot has become a part of the landscape.
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Santuko Chef’s Knife
Maker: TOG Ask any professional cook ‘what is your most useful piece of equipment?’ and most will reply: my chef’s knife. The late, great, Anthony Bourdain went one further and claimed: “You don’t need an entire drawer full of knives, only ONE good Japanese chef’s knife, which has the added attraction of looking really cool.” This TOG Santuko knife, bought for me by my wife Sue, was made in Seki where Samurai swords have been made for the last 800 years. Like the swords, it is made by alternating steel with layers of antimicrobial copper – a hard central core of steel for sharpness, softer steel layers for strength. The handle, a delight to hold, is made from Kebony maple – sustainable, water-resistant and beautifully etched with a 600 year old Japanese pattern which gives a superior grip. As I sharpen the blade I am aware that microscopic shards of steel and copper are being eroded away by my action, but then I remember wabi-sabi – a Japanese word that conveys the aesthetic appeal of something worn and shaped by age and use, the very embodiment of evanescence and acquired ‘character’. Quite apart from its functional attributes, my TOG Santuko knife is a joy to use – perfectly balanced, the correct weight in my hand, and razor sharp.
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