Cheek Armor Cup, Dragon Form, Mt. Fuji

Koga's popular Hoyoroi-hai (Cheek-Armor Cup) series, as its name suggests, mimics armor that fully covers the chin and cheeks — a unique sake vessel that makes the drinker appear to be donning armor as they sip.
The motif is the "kawari-kabuto" — the distinctively individual, unconventional helmets worn by warlords of the Warring States period. Koga was moved by the way these men, risking their lives on the battlefield, still competed in a uniquely personal sense of beauty — the impetus behind this work.

As social media has developed, the present era has become one in which anyone can wield influence — an age of gekokujo (the low overthrowing the high), as Koga sees it. "If you have the will and resolve to open up the era, you can rise regardless of your origin." Through making {Hoyoroi Sakazuki}, Koga continues to send encouragement to today's high-minded warriors.

This piece is themed on Uesugi Kenshin, representative of the legendary warlords of the Sengoku period. Inspired by his epithet "Dragon of Echigo," it is distinguished by the menacing set of the dragon's mouth. It forms a pair with a work themed on Takeda Shingen, known by the epithet "Tiger of Kai."

Rendered in shades of white, purple, and indigo to depict Mt. Fuji capped with snow. White is the base color of the porcelain itself; the range from blue to purple comes from a cobalt-based glaze that shifts color under a glossy, transparent overglaze. This yields two textures and colors in gradation: matte purple and glassy indigo.