Arita Ware Ceramic Serving Bowl, Wakakusa Tokusa

At a glance

• Curved rim and fresh Wakakusa green glaze give the bowl an unusually fluid silhouette
• Fine Tokusa stripes bring a traditional linear pattern into a more expressive serving form
• Generous 18cm size works for salads, pasta, individual mains or shared side dishes

The rim is what makes this bowl immediately different.

Rather than forming a regular circle, it rises and falls in a soft curve, giving the 18cm serving bowl a more sculptural presence on the table. The fresh green wakakusa glaze and fine vertical tokusa stripes emphasise that movement without making the design feel busy.

Tokusa takes its name from horsetail, whose straight stems inspired the long-used Japanese stripe pattern. Here those orderly lines contrast with the irregular outline of the bowl, bringing structure and movement together.

The size is useful beyond one particular cuisine. It works for an individual pasta or salad, a main with sauce, roasted vegetables, or a shared side placed in the centre of the table.

Made in Arita, Saga Prefecture, in ceramic rather than porcelain, giving this piece a distinctly different character from the smoother white porcelain bowls elsewhere in the collection.