2.4cmhigh.14cm width
 
Certain pieces transcend their functional category to become objets d'art that happen to hold food. Yoshino Masaki's silver-leaf scattered plate occupies precisely this elevated position—a serving dish that commands attention whether laden with sashimi or displayed empty on a gallery wall.
The composition demonstrates masterful restraint. Against a pale, almost lunar surface, Yoshino has scattered genuine silver leaf in irregular patterns that suggest wind-blown cherry petals or perhaps fragments of torn paper floating in water. The black rim (kuro-kuchimaki) provides architectural definition, framing the silvered interior like a museum mount frames precious calligraphy. This isn't decoration for decoration's sake—it's calculated visual poetry that understands negative space as eloquently as marked areas.
Yoshino belongs to the generation of Japanese ceramic artists who studied traditional techniques before deliberately subverting them. The silver-leaf application (ginpaku) references centuries-old maki-e lacquerware traditions, yet transplanted onto ceramic surfaces creates an entirely contemporary vocabulary. The pale clay body might be Shigaraki or Shino-derived—slightly rough, deliberately rustic, providing textural contrast to the mirror-smooth silver. That black rim employs iron-rich glaze that pools and breaks differently with each firing, ensuring no two plates share identical edges.
For European table settings increasingly influenced by kaiseki aesthetics, this plate performs brilliantly. The neutral palette works with any table linen colour, while the scattered silver catches candlelight at dinner parties, creating subtle sparkle without showiness. Use it for composed dishes—roasted vegetables, cheese selections, delicate pastries—where the food becomes part of the overall composition. The piece bridges formal and casual: equally appropriate for Sunday brunch avocado toast or holiday entertaining. Beyond dining, it excels as a catchall on entryway consoles or bedroom dressers, where jewellery and keys become miniature still-life arrangements against that silvered ground.
The plate arrives in excellent unused condition. The silver leaf shows no tarnishing or lifting—a testament to proper application and firing. The black rim displays intentional irregularities where the glaze pooled during kiln firing; these are desirable characteristics, not flaws. No chips, cracks, or repairs. The foot ring is cleanly finished and sits stable on flat surfaces.
Yoshino's work appears occasionally in Tokyo and Osaka gallery exhibitions but remains largely unknown outside Japan. As international design publications increasingly feature Japanese studio ceramics, and as collectors tire of mass-produced "artisan" goods, authentic handmade pieces like this represent sound acquisitions for those building considered collections.