STORY NOTES

Many believe Japan to have the oldest ceramics tradition in the world. Based on carbon dating, it goes as far back as 10,000 B.C. with the Jomon – or "cord marked" pottery.

Unlike in the West, Japanese pottery is admired as fine art, on a par with painting and sculpture, as well as for its utilitarian purposes. A single teacup crafted by a master potter could command as high a price as 25,000 koku by feudal lords. (A koku is the amount of rice needed to feed a man for a full year.)

Different areas are known for their unique pottery. Mishiko, a village northeast of Tokyo, is renowned for sturdy pieces of glazed stoneware. Shigaraki is famous for large storage jars. The Arita district of Kyushu, Japan's southernmost island, is known for its fine porcelain and is considered the nation's ceramics capital.

Toyotomi, the great unifier of Japan during the latter 16th century, led an unsuccessful invasion of Korea, and many Korean artisans were taken back to Japan. The Arita porcelain industry was founded by these Korean artisans. Today, the wares from the Arita kilns are known as Imari ware, after the port from which they are shipped.

The major difference between ceramics and porcelain has to do with the materials used and the firing temperatures. Ceramic pieces consist primarily of clay and are baked at 1000° centigrade. Porcelain is made of finely crushed quartz, feldspar, and kaolin, and fired above 1300°.

References:

The Dawns of Tradition, 1983, published by Nissan Motor Co., Japan, has a wonderful overview and focuses on two schools, with beautiful photographs of potters at work. In Japan Day by Day, by Edward S. Morse, 1990, Cherokee Publishing of Atlanta, GA, the author describes in detail visits to several schools and kilns. Many of the visuals came from two videos: Ugetsu Monogatari, 1953, directed by Kenji Mizoguchi, a beautifully photographed ghost story about two peasants who try to seek their fortune; and a National Geographic presentation of the "Living Treasures of Japan," which profiles several artisans working in various traditional arts such as cloth making, sword making, and, of course, pottery.

I guess 13 was my lucky number this past summer. It was with my 13th Eisner nomination (counting the shared one with my Trilogy mates) that I received the award for Best Serialized Story, on Friday the 13th at Comic-Con International. It was my third win, if you're keeping score.

I was also given the Cookie award for the second year in a row by Douglas Barre and Kay Carter. As usual, it was delicious.

Where do ideas come from?

I was asked by Wizard Magazine to do a three-page story, but after about a week I was unable to think of a suitable story.

I was talking to my good friend Sergio Aragonés, and he thought up a scenario off the top of his head: "Usagi is walking along a river and the water is red, so he thinks there's a battle. He runs upriver, but it's just some dyers rinsing out fabric."

"Well, I don't know..." I said.

"Do something about netsuke, then."

My story, entitled "Netsuke," appeared in the August '99 issue of Wizard, colored, of course, by Tom Luth.

When writing "The Missive" for this issue, I needed an anecdote demonstrating Young Usagi's impulsiveness, and I thought of that story Sergio told me. It fit in perfectly.

Where do I get my ideas? Sometimes they're given to me by friends.

Incidentally, this is Usagi's son Jotaro's first appearance since UY Book 6 [and UY Vol. 1, #28-31]: "Circles".

Speaking of netsuke, I would like to thank Nathan Reed for the wonderful rabbit netsuke that he gave me this year in San Diego.

Fan photography by Todd Bustillo

Stan displays his Eisner Award at the Comic-Con in San Diego,
flanked on all sides by members of the Usagi Yojimbo Dojo.