I still want to show you a beautiful design of the Flower of Life what I saw in the Israel Museum in Jerusalem. This mosaic floor comes from one of Herod’s palaces the Herodium, south of Jerusalem. It is square with the geometric shape of the Flower of Life in its center decorated with palmettes and pomegranates decorated in the corners. This was made 2000 years ago! Just astonishing.

These geometrical forms are said to act as a template from which all life springs. See also my blog from Friday August 5, 2011:
http://swanceramics.com/2011/08/05/flower-of-life-decorations/

.

I am taking off my hat for you all!  My hair is growing back all curly!














We had a wonderful time in Israel. Really an incredible country with so much history. Very, very interesting!

This is a picture of a view from Jerusalem taken from the Mount of Olives. You can clearly see the Shrine of the Mount of the Rock with the golden dome located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem. The sights significance stems from religious traditions regarding the rock, know as the Foundation Stone, at its heart.







Here Adriaan and I are standing on Masada with a view behind us of the Dead Sea and Jordan. Masada “fortress” is the name of a site of ancient palaces of Herod and fortifications on top of an isolated rock plateau. So incredible!
Of course, we also swam/drifted in the Dead Sea. Amazing!

And now back to work and returning to Japan to prepare for my exhibition at the Toko Gallery in Mashiko, Japan, from November 27 – December 9, 2010!

It was held in the museum “Het Valkhof” in the city Nijmegen. This museum houses a major collection of Roman antiquities, old masters, and modern art. It is located at the edge of the historic Valkhof Park, which was once the site of a Roman encampment and, many centuries later the residence of Charlemagne. Today, you will find an excitingly modern structure for art and archeology. A long glass gallery with its undulating ceiling offers a panoramic —-My uncle busy in his workshop.—– view of the grand river landscape beyond.

My father was also born in the city Nijmegen and as young as 18 years old and later becoming a historian, he was already a tour guide for the “Valkhof Park”. And now I have some of my work in the museum!

For five generations we have artists in the family and it started with my great-grandfather Herman Arens, who was a photographer and art drawing teacher and his brother Arnold Arens, who moved to Antwerpen (Belgium). He invented and had a patent on a machine for a copperplate press for decorations.






The 3 sons of my great-grandfather worked together in a guild of the “Brothers Arens”. My grandfather, Rudolphus, was the oldest, Albert was the painter and drew a lot of the designs and Johan, also a goldsmith, was the youngest. They made a lot of art for churches of which you can see a photo in my blog of February 2, 2010.

A special necklace made for the mayor of the city Huissen in 1948 by the “Brothers Arens”.

My uncle and godfather, Rudie Arens, who is born in 1918, and the 5th child out of 6, first wanted to become a doctor, but then chose to follow in his dad’s footsteps. He went to the appropriate art schools and had practical experience with a lot of artists. He also became an art teacher and in his workshop he taught over 80 students for their practical year. Some of his work:

A silver seahorse on precious stone.

He crafted lots of sigilla/signs for university student organizations.

The design of a commemorative “Spoon” for the birth of “Prins Bernard”, one of the sons of Princess Margriet, sister of Queen Beatrix of The Netherlands.

Of course, I have to show you this swan, which he crafted beautifully on top of a leftover medieval staff.

This is another drawing of some fine jewelry, so beautiful that it almost looks real.

The granddaughter, Charlotte Rombouts Arens, the fifth generation, will continue the goldsmithing art.

My brother Ruud-Jan Kokke, who is a designer, my sister Alida Kokke, who is a floral artist and I are the fourth generation participating in this exhibition.

My sister Alida with “Primula” flower prints surrounded by “email” (color glaze) floral primula jewelry of uncle Rudie.

The cane and stool are designed by my brother Ruud-Jan and acquired, shown and sold in the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
Then my work: the “Angle” Kamakura Red Teapot and cup, the “Toward the middle” plate and an engraved white slip plate.

We had breakfast in this restaurant, a typical old style house.



We had a nice time together for one day and then I returned to Holland to return the next day to Japan.

My sister-in-law Inge, my son Roland and niece Esmee.













We played a board game from about a hundred years ago, which our grandfather played from my husband’s family side. It is played once a year on New Year’s Eve. It is about farmers being afraid of having to pay too much taxes. We play with old Dutch pennies not being used anymore because of the Euro.

Then at 12 midnight after wishing everybody a Happy New Year and drinking champagne, everybody rushes outside to light fireworks with a big bang starting the New Year! It is not organized. Anybody can light fireworks. It is everywhere around you!  Watch this YOU TUBE VIDEO!!

And it was snowing!

What a beautiful way to start the Holiday Season!

I arrived here in Miharu, Fukushima last Tuesday to work, throw some pots, at Kusakabe-san’s place and fire a kiln.
Miharu means “Three spring”: the first 3 blossoms in spring are: plum, cherry and peach: “ume, sakura and momo”. The “ume” blossoms already finished, but the Sakura is in full bloom and the peach like here in the entrance to Kusakabe-san farm house, is starting to bloom.

We also saw some wonderful sakura trees and the surroundings here is completely engulfed by the colors from white, light pink to dark pink. It is beautiful.

Cherry tree lighted up at night.

Kusakabe-san entering a temple.

Jasmin and Kusakabe-san underneath a Sakura tree.

The city Miharu: In the far back everything is pink also. Only it is not easy to see. (Click for enlargement).

And this morning at 6 am, we went to the “Takizakura”; the waterfall Sakura tree, here in Miharu. This tree is 1200 years old and poles support the heavy branches. It is a historic monument. Already so many people were up to admire the tree. This weekend lots of people will be visiting this Sakura tree. And the roads will be blocked all around town!

Many women celebrate this day by wearing a “furisode”:a style of kimono with long sleeves that drape down. Since most are unable to put on a kimono by themselves due to the intricacies involved in putting one on, many choose to visit a beauty salon to dress and to set their hair. A full set of formal clothing is expensive, so it is usually either inherited or rented rather than being bought specially for the occasion. Men sometimes also wear traditional dress: dark kimono with hakama.

So, on Sunday we went to the Hachimangu Shrine and saw some beautifully dressed women. They go there to ask for blessings. But because still of the New Year a lot of people visited Kamakura that day.

A nice sunny cold day for this Coming-of-Age day.

The back with the sash “Obi” and the front of the dress.

Three beautiful women/girls with their handbags and “Zori” slippers.

Odawara Castle had very strong defenses, because it was situated on a hill, surrounded by moats with water on the low side, and dry ditches on the hill side, with banks, walls and cliffs located all around the castle, enabled the defenders to repel attacks by the great warriors Uesugi Kenshin and Takeda Shingen. However, Toyotomi Hideyoshi took the castle in 1590, and awarded the holdings of the Hojo to Tokugawa Ieyasu, who in turn installed the Okubo clan at Odawara.

During the Edo period, Odawara’s strategic location on the Tokaido,  between mountainous Hakone and Sagami Bay, gave it great strategic importance.

Eventually, Odawara Castle was destroyed by Meiji government. However, present Odawara Castle was rebuilt in 1960. It serves as a museum and is designated as an important historical monument. Today,  a reproduction of the castle stands high on a hill above Odawara.

The moat around the castle is filled with koi fish.

My boys, Arjan and Roland, and Katie had fun being dressed up as Samurai and Lady.