Mitsukuni Misaki’s Water-Blue Glazed Vessel is the result of rubbing four layers of pigmented slip–pale blue, light blue, white, then blue again–before firing, creating subtle variation in color as if the vase has been slowly weathered with time. Misaki uses traditional Jomon techniques, hand building his vessels using coils of clay and rolling a braided cord over the surface for texture. His color palette, however, takes from the modern: he cites the gradients and soft hues of Mark Rothko as inspiration for his glazes, including his signature blue shades.