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erik thomsen japanese paintings and works of art

Japanese Paintings and Works of Art

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Page 1: Japanese Paintings and Works of Art

erik thomsenjapanese paintings and works of art

Page 2: Japanese Paintings and Works of Art
Page 3: Japanese Paintings and Works of Art
Page 4: Japanese Paintings and Works of Art
Page 5: Japanese Paintings and Works of Art

japanese paintings and works of art

erik thomsen asian art

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Cover:

Flowers of the Four Seasons, detail, pair of six-fold screens

Anonymous artist of the Rimpa School (Nr. 1)

Sales exhibition

March 31– April 5, 2006

The International Asian Art Fair

The Seventh Regiment Armory

Park Avenue at 67th Street, New York, NY 10021

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Table of contents

5

7

33

45

59

75

84

86

92

foreword and acknowledgements

screens

paintings

bamboo baskets

ceramics

lacquers

signatures, seals and inscriptions

notes

bibliography

japanese paintings and works of art

erik thomsen asian art

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5

foreword and acknowledgements

It is with great pleasure that I present this inaugural

catalog, which includes a selection from my five

specialties within classical Japanese art: screens,

paintings, bamboo baskets, ceramics and lacquers.

Unlike most Japanese art objects seen in the West,

all items presented here were made, not with ex-

ports in mind, but rather for the Japanese market.

Such artwork avoids many of the compromises and

alterations in artistic traditions that mark the art

made to fit foreign tastes. Instead, we see works of

art that were clearly created in line with Japanese

aesthetics and traditions. Most of the objects here

were made with one or more of the four classical

arts in mind: the ways of tea, flowers, calligraphy,

and incense (Sadô, Kadô, Shodô, and Kôdô).

Ceramics used in the Way of Tea, Sadô, mirror

Japanese aesthetics especially well. The simple,

imperfect shapes of tea ceramics draw our attention

to their beautiful textures and colors that can only

truly be appreciated upon holding them in one’s

hands.

Bamboo baskets such as the ones presented in this

catalog were made for the Way of Flowers, Kadô,

to present ikebana flower arrangements. They also

represent another important element of the tea

ceremony, or Way of Tea. Highly prized by tea masters,

they commanded princely sums in the peak years of

basket making during the Taishô and early Shôwa

periods, ca. 1910 to 19�0. Their beauty is obvious in

their form, and, upon closer inspection, in the skillful

workmanship of the fine details. Signed bamboo

baskets such as these were largely unknown in the

West until the acclaimed exhibition in 1999 at the

Asia Society, New York, of the Cotsen basket

collection.

Lacquerwork, such as writing boxes and paper

boxes, are intrinsic to the Way of Calligraphy, Shodô.

They were meant to be used, but, like most artwork

in Japan, were carefully stored away into fitted boxes

when not in use. As a result, they are therefore

today, decades later, in immaculate condition. The

simple designs, such as in catalog item 22, are partic-

ularly effective against the mirror-black roiro ground,

and, when examined up close, reveal superb details.

Hanging scrolls and folding screens have been an

important part of Japanese art and culture for over

a millennium. In the tea ceremony, a tea master

would often select a scroll with a painting or callig-

raphy that provided the best match for the season

and occasion. Screens were also used within the tea

ceremony, as well as in performances of classical

arts, where they functioned as dramatic or festive

backgrounds to the event.

I would like to thank those who made this catalog

possible: the designer Valentin Beinroth for his

clean, imaginative design, attention to detail and

boundless energy, which kept me focused on the

catalog in spite of fairs and travels; the photogra-

pher Klaus Wäldele for his patience, long working

sessions and good eye; Hans Bjarne Thomsen, my

brother, professor in Japanese art history at the

University of Chicago, for his invaluable research,

which uncovered several surprises; and Inger Sigrun

Brodey, my sister, professor in literature at the

University of North Carolina, for her proof-reading

and good suggestions.

I would also like to thank Mr. Daizaburô Tanaka,

owner of the gallery Tanaka Onkodô in Tokyo, where

I apprenticed 23 years ago, and my parents, Harry

and Ene Marie Thomsen, for giving me the founda-

tions upon which I could grow.

Above all I want to thank my wife, Cornelia, for all

her support, encouragement, and help that she has

given me now during the catalog production and

over the years. I can think of no one else who better

manages the many tasks as wife, mother, exhibitor,

student and artist.

Erik Thomsen March 2006

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screens

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1

Flowers of the Four SeasonsAnonymous artist of the Rimpa School

Edo period (1615–1�6�), early 19th century

H 65" × W 1��" each

(165 cm × 366 cm)

Pair of six-fold screens

Ink, mineral colors, and gofun on gold foil.

This fine pair of Rimpa School screens presents a

journey through the four seasons of the year by

representative plants and flowers for each season.

For example, plants representing the spring are the

kodemari, sumire, and yamabuki. The summer is

represented by the iris, lily, nadeshiko, aoi, and kiri.

The fall by the chrysanthemum, morning glory, bush

clover, ominaeshi, and susuki. And the winter is

represented solely by the narcissus.

Each of the twelve clusters on the screens repre-

sents a group of plants from a particular season.

The grouping of the clusters is according to a larger

plan: the larger cluster of chrysanthemums growing

around a fence forms the left-most panels of the

right-hand screen. This group connects to another

autumn group in the right-most panels of the left-

hand screen. Placed next to each other, these two

halves combine to form a coherent program: the

panels furthest to the right display the only cluster

of spring flowers, from this, the directions (like that

of a handscroll) goes left, and we travel through

groups of summer and autumn clusters. At the very

end, we meet with the only winter group in the

screens: a small group of narcissus peeking from

around the farthest corner.

Similar examples may be seen in a number of

museum collections.1

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12

2

Birds and Flowers of the SeasonsCircle of Ogata Kôrin (1658–1716)

Edo period (1615–1868), early 18th century

H 65" × W 142 ½" each

(165 cm × 362 cm)

Pair of six-fold screens

Ink, colors, and gofun on paper

An anonymous Rimpa School artist has created a

luxurious and dense undergrowth of flowering plants

and trees, which conceals not only additional flora,

but also a pair of quail and pheasants among its

vegetation. This pair of folding screens with painting

in ink, colors, and gofun represents a collection of

the flowering plants of the four seasons.

There are the spring flowers, wisteria, willow, thistle,

kodamari, suzushiro, shakuyaku, and kobushi.

The summer plants are represented by mizuaoi, uri,

tsuyukusa, iris, lily, peony, and an eggplant. The

autumn plants include susuki, kikyô, keitô, nadeshiko,

ominaeshi, kuzu, bush clover, morning glory, and

gourds. The sole winter plant is the pine. Here, as

in other works, the flowers of the autumn are clearly

favored: the autumn flowers are centered on an

entire six-fold screen, while the other six-fold screen

is divided among the flowers of the three other

seasons.

A favorite technique of Rimpa artists can be seen

here, namely the tarashikomi, a process that involves

dripping ink of differing modality into ink that has

not yet dried, thus producing a mottled effect. In

addition, the ink modalities are carefully varied, in

order to create a convincing sense of depth to the

leafy undergrowth: there is a clearly articulated layer-

ing of leaves, important in a work with this many

leaves and flowers arranged on top of each other in

a small space.

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1�

Follower of Tawaraya Sôtatsu (?–16�3?)

Edo period (1615–1�6�), early 1�th century

H 6� ½" × W 7�"

(16� cm × 1�� cm)

Single two-fold screen

Ink, mineral colors, and gofun on paper,

with gold foil ground

A follower of Sôtatsu painted this fine and early

two-panel screen with the depiction of twelve fans,

scattered on a gold ground. Of the twelve, two are

closed and ten are either fully or partly opened.

Most of the fans are seasonal in nature and depict

flowers or plants in bloom or in the process of

changing colors. For example, spring is represented

by cherry blossoms and the willow; the summer

is represented by the hydrangea (ajisai), and the

autumn by the bush clover (hagi) and the maple

leaves. In addition, vigorous waves are associated

with the stormy seas of the autumn. The winter is

represented by a pair of fans to the lower left corner,

which depicts Prince Ariwara no Narihira (�25–��0),

the main character of Ise Monogatari, on horse,

looking at a snow-clad Mt. Fuji in the neighboring

fan; the distance between the rider and the far-away

mountain is here represented by separating the

scene onto two different fans. The source of the

image is a poem by Narihira that describes Mt. Fuji

as seen on a journey:

Indifferent to the seasons

Mount Fuji stands aloft

Flecked like a kanako cloth

With fallen snow

The visual representation of this famous poem

usually centers on the Prince on horseback, look-

ing over his side at the snow-clad Mt. Fuji in the

distance.

Fan screens present us with distinct puzzles: was the

placement of the fans on the screen controlled by

the artist? Are the groupings and placements of the

fans significant? And are there inner meanings within

the fans themselves? There was certainly an element

of play within some fan screens, for example, the

pairs by Sôtatsu in the Kunaichô and the Sanbôin

of the Daigoji Temple, where each fan relates to a

specific literary source.1 The object for the viewer

was then to be able to identify each scene, poem,

or chapter from the available evidence. Likewise,

identification was the key in examples where all the

fans on a screen stemmed from one narrative, as,

for example, fifty-four fans representing each of the

fifty-four chapters of the Tales of Genji.2

This particular screen may also contain an inner

meaning: a meaning that focused on the only figural

representation in the screen, namely Prince Narihira.

The placement of the Prince may be significant, as

we have another screen, a six-fold screen by the

school of Sôtatsu, that is roughly contemporary to

the two-fold screen in this catalog. In the six-panel

screen, a fan with a seated figure appears at exactly

the same position, i.e., the lower left corner, on the

last panel, second to bottom fan.3 In this case, as

with the other, a courtier appears among fans whose

subjects are all seasonal markers. In the case of the

two-fold screen, the ensemble of fans, if indeed

intended as an ensemble, may all be markers to

various poems within the Tales of the Ise. If so, this

leaves the viewer (and the reader of this catalog)

with a distinctly challenging game: the identification

of all the specific poems represented by the images

on the screen.

3

Fan Screen with Scenes from the Tales of Ise

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18

Follower of Tawaraya Sôtatsu (?–1643?)

Edo period (1615–1868), early 18th century

H 64 ½" × W 74"

(164 cm × 188 cm)

Single two-fold screen

Ink, mineral colors, and gofun on paper,

with gold foil ground

A follower of Sôtatsu painted this fine and early

two-panel screen with the depiction of twelve fans,

scattered on a gold ground. Of the twelve, two are

closed and ten are either fully or partly opened.

Most of the fans are seasonal in nature and depict

flowers or plants in bloom or in the process of

changing colors. For example, spring is represented

by cherry blossoms and the willow; the summer

is represented by the hydrangea (ajisai), and the

autumn by the bush clover (hagi) and the maple

leaves. In addition, vigorous waves are associated

with the stormy seas of the autumn. The winter is

represented by a pair of fans to the lower left corner,

which depicts Prince Ariwara no Narihira (825–880),

the main character of Ise Monogatari, on horse,

looking at a snow-clad Mt. Fuji in the neighboring

fan; the distance between the rider and the far-away

mountain is here represented by separating the

scene onto two different fans. The source of the

image is a poem by Narihira that describes Mt. Fuji

as seen on a journey:

Indifferent to the seasons

Mount Fuji stands aloft

Flecked like a kanako cloth

With fallen snow

The visual representation of this famous poem

usually centers on the Prince on horseback, look-

ing over his side at the snow-clad Mt. Fuji in the

distance.

Fan screens present us with distinct puzzles: was the

placement of the fans on the screen controlled by

the artist? Are the groupings and placements of the

fans significant? And are there inner meanings within

the fans themselves? There was certainly an element

of play within some fan screens, for example, the

pairs by Sôtatsu in the Kunaichô and the Sanbôin

of the Daigoji Temple, where each fan relates to a

specific literary source.1 The object for the viewer

was then to be able to identify each scene, poem,

or chapter from the available evidence. Likewise,

identification was the key in examples where all the

fans on a screen stemmed from one narrative, as,

for example, fifty-four fans representing each of the

fifty-four chapters of the Tales of Genji.2

This particular screen may also contain an inner

meaning: a meaning that focused on the only figural

representation in the screen, namely Prince Narihira.

The placement of the Prince may be significant, as

we have another screen, a six-fold screen by the

school of Sôtatsu, that is roughly contemporary to

the two-fold screen in this catalog. In the six-panel

screen, a fan with a seated figure appears at exactly

the same position, i.e., the lower left corner, on the

last panel, second to bottom fan.3 In this case, as

with the other, a courtier appears among fans whose

subjects are all seasonal markers. In the case of the

two-fold screen, the ensemble of fans, if indeed

intended as an ensemble, may all be markers to

various poems within the Tales of the Ise. If so, this

leaves the viewer (and the reader of this catalog)

with a distinctly challenging game: the identification

of all the specific poems represented by the images

on the screen.

3

Fan Screen with Scenes from the Tales of Ise

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20

4

Cranes of Summer and AutumnTosa School

Edo period (1615–1868), 18th century

H 28 ¼" × W 98 ¾" each

(72 cm × 251 cm)

Pair of six-fold screens

Ink, mineral colors and gofun

on paper and gold foil

Here four pairs of cranes are shown inhabiting a

marshy landscape against a rich gold background.

The cranes represent the different species that

frequent the Japanese archipelago. The image,

of course, represents an ideal space, one in which

the stylized cranes can strike poses and be shown

next to the flowers and plants of different seasons,

blooming at the same time within the space of the

screen surface.

The two halves of the screen pair were made to

be shown together, and the lake that is depicted

on both was constructed as the spatial unit that

combined the two compositions. When placed next

to each other, as intended, large growths of autumn

flowers anchor the extremes of the larger composi-

tion. The autumn flowers are composed of various

types of chrysanthemums as well as the kikyô plant

(a Chinese bellflower). The area between the two

large groups of plants is punctuated by smaller plant

groups, both autumnal plants (chrysanthemums and

marshy reeds) and summer plants (iris and mizuaoi).

In other words, the land mass to the extreme right

and left represents autumn, and the lake, the space

that unites the two, represents summer. Traversing

this distance in time, seasons, and space, are the

cranes and plants, all of which are shown, one after

the other, in striking poses. The artist has incorpo-

rated a relationship of equality between the plants

and cranes, all of which occupy about the same

space and have been shrunk (or expanded) to

appear to be the same height and volume as each

other. Moreover, the spacings and compositions had

been ably planned out on the basis of the twelve

individual panels of the screens: the artist has

succeeded in creating within each panel pair (tradi-

tionally thought out as a unit), a balanced, indepen-

dent composition.

An interesting aspect of the screen is the signature

to the right extreme of the combined pair. The

signature was clearly added later, as can be seen by

the discoloration of the gold surrounding the sig-

nature. Another name was probably removed and

replaced by one which reads »by the brush of Tosa

Mitsuoki, the [honorary] Imperial Guard« and a seal

marked Fujiwara.1 Both names and honorary title are

associated with the artist Tosa Mitsuoki (1617–1691),

the most important Tosa school painter of the last

four hundred years. Although the work is a very fine

example of the 18th century Tosa School, a previous

owner apparently felt it necessary to try to improve

on the pedigree of the screen by changing the

artist’s name to that of a better-known artist.

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2�

5

Four Elegant PastimesShibata Zeshin (1�07–1�91)

Meiji period (1�6�–1912), 19th century

H �� ½" × W 109" each

(123 cm × 277 cm)

Signed (right screen): »Zeshin,« with

Zeshin jar seal. (left screen): »emulating older

paintings, Zeshin« (Koga ni narau Zeshin); with

Zeshin jar seal

Pair of six-fold screens

Ink, colors, gofun, and lacquer on paper

This pair is an important work in the oeuvre of Shibata

Zeshin. It is one of four variations on a theme by an

older painting. The screen pair with painting in ink,

black lacquer and mineral colors depicts women and

men partaking in the four classical Chinese elegant

pastimes. The four pastimes, or the kinki shoga,

were traditionally the koto (musical instrument),

chess, calligraphy, and painting. Within these panels

the four undergo humorous changes: the musical

Page 29: Japanese Paintings and Works of Art

25

instruments become the samisen and the biwa,

chess becomes backgammon and go, calligraphy

becomes the act of letter writing, and paintings

become the pair of standing screens located within

the right screen.

The left screen is signed »emulating older paintings,

Zeshin (Koga ni narau Zeshin) and sealed Zeshin;

while the right screen is signed and sealed Zeshin.

Zeshin based his composition on the famous Hikone

Screen, a single, six-fold screen from the early

seventeenth century.1 The screen is presently in a

Hikone museum, but was at the time of Zeshin in a

rich merchant’s house, where Zeshin was allowed to

study it closely. From the study and reworking of the

Hikone Screen emerged four innovative variations

on the Hikone theme. As a truly inspired artistic

personality, Zeshin was not satisfied with making a

Page 30: Japanese Paintings and Works of Art

26

mere copy and made all four versions significantly

different from each other.

In this particular version, two of the figures are

straight copies from the Hikone Screen, but many

others are adaptations, many by slightly changing

angles of depiction. For example, the girl pointing

at the two screens in the present version appears in

the Hikone Screen as a girl pointing in the opposite

direction. Likewise, entirely new figures abound,

most notably the three central dancers. In effect,

Zeshin started with a single six-panel screen (one

that likely joined four panels of one screen with

two from another) and stretched it out into a unified

twelve-panel composition. Up close, both the new

and old versions show a similar emphasis on textile

patterns; however, Zeshin also introduces new fea-

tures, such as the innovative use of black lacquer in

the women’s hair.

Of the four sets that Zeshin made from the Hikone

original, one is in the collection of the Metropolitan

Museum, New York, and illustrated in Gôke, vol. 1,

ills. 219–220. The second is in the Lee Institute for

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27

Japanese Art at the Clark Center, Hanford, CA, and

illustrated in Gôke, vol. 1, 210–211.2 The third is the

present screen pair, illustrated in Gôke, vol. 1, ills.

221–222. And the fourth is a pair that has not yet

been illustrated, but rests in a private Japanese col-

lection.3 Most of the four have been passed down

in prestigious collections; the present pair was, for a

long time, in the collection of the industrialist

Fujiyama Raita (1�63–193�).

Provenance:

Collection of Fujiyama Raita 藤山雷太 (1�63–193�)

Exhibited:

Yugei no Bi at the Fukuoka Municipal Art Museum

in 1997.

Published:

Gôke Tadaomi, ed. Shibata Zeshin meihinshû:

Bakumatsu kaikaki no shikkô kaiga. 2 vols. Tokyo:

Gakken, 19�1, vol. 1, item 221–222.

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2�

Attributed to Bai’ôken Eishun

梅翁軒永春 (active 170�–1763)

Edo period (1615–1�6�), circa 1710–1720

H �2" × W �9 ½"

(107 cm × 227 cm)

Single six-fold screen

Ink, mineral colors, and gofun on paper

This early nikuhitsu screen presents the viewer with a

festive flower viewing scene, complete with interior

scenes of lounging courtesans and outside scenes

of playing children and performers. The scene to the

right describes two buildings within a certain plea-

sure quarter. Judging from the bucket and brooms

attached the roof of the building seen below and

from the blossoming cherry trees lining the streets

surrounding the two houses, this may well refer to

the Yoshiwara area of Edo.1

The interior scene describes a number of courtesans

in relaxed modes; they are seen conversing, drinking

rice wine, and playing the samisen, a three-stringed

musical instrument. One group of courtesans, in

finely-differentiated kimono, enjoys the flowering

cherry trees from an open room that has had its

sliding doors removed. An interior room can also

be seen to the back of the building; here the doors

are almost closed, leaving, however, a crack open

to allow the viewer a voyeuristic glance into the

interiors, where a woman is seated and attending

a reclining figure, whose identity cannot be ascer-

tained. The room seems to be lit by an andon lamp,

whose light casts the shadows of the shapes within

the rooms on the paper-covered sliding doors.

The exterior scene, that occupies the entire left side

of the screen, shows a larger group of people enjoy-

ing a whole range of activities. This is a typical genre

scene showing the various contemporary games and

occupations. We have a prominently placed blind

masseur, here seeming to dance with two young

women, while observed by a large male figure. Other

girls are playing, some with a long stick, others

breaking a branch off the cherry tree, still others are

playing with a kemari ball. A dog painted on the far

left completes the last of the six panels.

The painting is unusual for its creative combination

of two known genres: one a type that shows scenes

within the Yoshiwara quarters, and the other show-

ing the daily occurrences of commoners, usually

in terms of street scenes. The combination may

well connect to the possible authorship by Bai’ôken

Eishun, who was an Osaka artist known for his

wide repertoire, with not only paintings, but with

an oeuvre that includes both surimono prints and

illustrated books.2 A number of paintings are known

by the hand of this exceptionally long-active artist,

including key works in the Freer Gallery of Art in

Washington, D.C.3

Provenance: Formerly in the collection of the Manno

Art Museum, Osaka, Japan

Published: Kobayashi Tadashi, ed. Manno Bijutsukan,

Ukiyoe nikuhitsu taikan, vol. 7. (Tokyo: Kodansha,

1996), cat. nr. 32.

6

Flower Viewing Season in the Pleasure Quarters

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paintings

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3�

7

Hakuin Ekaku(16�5–176�)

Edo period (1615–1�6�), circa 1765

H 35 ¼" × W 9" (incl. mounting 66 ½" × 12 ½")

(90 cm × 23 cm, 169 cm × 32 cm)

Three seals of artist: Kokanki, Hakuin and Ekaku

Hanging scroll, ink on paper

Bodhidharma in Meditation, Facing a Wall

(Menpeki Daruma 面壁達磨)

Inscription:

「為心之師莫師於心」

Become the master of your heart,

and do not let it master you.

Kokoro no shi to nari, kokoro no shi wa nashi

In this dramatic hanging scroll, the Zen Buddhist

monk Hakuin has adopted an admonition from the

Six Parmitas Sutra, and placed it in the context

of a meditating Bodhidharma (J. Daruma) figure.1

The sutra text admonishes the reader (and, in

extension, Hakuin his viewer) to disregard his or her

own heart, or worldly matters, and to instead focus

one’s energy on ruling the passions. By depicting

the meditating Bodhidharma beneath this phrase,

Hakuin may well be indicating that strict adherence

to Zen Buddhist doctrines and rituals such as seated

meditation is the correct way to become the master

of one’s passions.

A meditating Bodhidharma, here facing an imagi-

nary wall, is a singularly apt symbol of strict adher-

ence to ritual. The central, defining event in the life

of Bodhidharma, a semi-legendary monk, credited

with bringing Zen Buddhism from India to China in

the sixth century CE, was seen as his single-minded

period of meditation, said to have been conducted

in a cave, facing a blank stone wall, for nine years.

Distractions were done away with, for example,

after falling asleep during meditation, he tore away

his eyelids.2 Moreover, as seated meditation (zazen)

was one of the key rituals in Zen Buddhism, Hakuin’s

choice of the seated meditating Bodhidharma

seems quite apt.

The painting is not, however, simply an illustration

of a Buddhist dictum; there are artistic traditions

and other layers of meaning behind the painting.

One striking aspect of the painting is its brushwork

and ink modulation. It is clear that the brush moved

quickly to create the seated figure and inscription

in a few dramatic strokes, paying little attention to

finer modulation of line. However, by using coarsely

ground ink and heavy-sized paper, Hakuin was

able to create a dramatic mottling effect within the

individual lines of the figure.3 The dramatic tonal

contrasts within the lines, the vigorous speed of the

brush, and the immediacy of the brushwork signifi-

cantly heightens the intensity of the painting. In

addition, the curious mottling effect of the ink also

increases the presence of the figure: the lines seem

to imply age and a sense of permanence. Although

brushed in only a few strokes, the figure acquires

paradoxically a sense of monumentality that goes

beyond its actual space on the paper. The technique

is closely connected to the message: they reempha-

size the immobility and greatness of the Zen Bud-

dhist patriarch and create a sense of timelessness

for Bodhidharma as well as for Buddhist rituals and

doctrine. Hakuin uses the mottled ink technique in

other paintings, including other forms of the seated

Bodhidharma, but in few other example has he so

successfully created a simple figure of monumental

strength through so few lines.�

The painting is clearly also intended to take a place

in the »one-brushstroke Bodhidharma« (Ippitsu

Daruma) tradition, in which the robes of the Bod-

hidharma were drawn with one continuous stroke

of the brush.5 The tradition ultimately derives from

early Chinese depictions of the patriarch, in which

the robes were described with a bare minimum of

strokes. Numerous examples of one-brushstroke

paintings exist, including a Sengoku period (133�–

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36

depth from the deeper implications of this switch in

identities. By representing himself as iconic figures,

Hakuin challenges our preconceptions through

flashes of insight and humor.

Although this painting was probably performed as

a sekiga (»seat painting«) or a performance piece

completed in an instant with only a few brush-

strokes at a communal occasion, the painting is by

no means a trifle of little meaning. Many layers and

traditions operate behind this seemingly simple

painting, giving it a profound sense of depth and

importance and, at the same time, playing humor-

ous games with the viewer. Hakuin’s paintings were

never entirely serious or entirely playful: forming a

key element within his complex and timeless art.

The painting is housed in a fitted kiri wood box,

certified and inscribed in 1960 by Tsûzan Sôkaku

(1�91–197�), the seventeenth abbot of Hakuin’s

temple, the Shôinji Temple, in Hara.

Published: Morita Shiryû. Bokubi Tokushû: Hakuin

Bokuseki. Kyoto: Bokubisha, 19�0, nr. 279.

1392) example at the Erinji Temple in Kai that may

have served as a prototype for Hakuin as well as

examples by Shôkai Reiken (1315–1396), Isshi (160�–

16�6), and other Zen monks of the Edo period.6

Hakuin, however, takes that pictorial tradition a step

further by incorporating another word-and-image

tradition, that of incorporating hidden characters

and messages into an image.

The idea of hiding characters within images is an

older Japanese tradition that has been incorporated

into a number of media, including sutra frontispiece

paintings and lacquer boxes. Hakuin, however,

seems to have been the first to combine the two

into a single image. The question then arises for

the viewer: what specific character? Various authori-

ties have attempted to describe Hakuin’s seated

Bodhidharma figure as one character: Katô Shôshun

suggests that it represents the character gu (愚,

»foolishness«), and others the character nin (忍 en-

durance). Both are possible in terms of the standard

Japanese reductions of Chinese characters. Another

possibility is the character in (the right part of the

character 隠) that forms Hakuin’s own name. This is

supported by a pair of Menpeki Daruma paintings in

the Konchi’in Temple in Tokyo.7 The two paintings of

the pair were painted by Hakuin at the same time to

commemorate the meeting between him and Gudô

愚堂, a fellow Rinzai sect monk. From reading the in-

scriptions, it is clear that the two seated figures were

the two friends, reduced to simple Chinese charac-

ters of gu and in, representing Gudô and Hakuin.�

This is then a clear case where the seated Daruma

can represent the name of Hakuin and also a clear

indication that Hakuin’s Menpeki Daruma may have

multiple meanings. In other words, the seated

Bodhidharma painting in this catalog may also be a

playful representation of the monk Hakuin himself

engaged in seated meditation. If so, this would also

play in with the Hakuin we know from other paint-

ings, where the painter sometimes takes the place

of Daruma, Hotei, or other figures, thereby gain-

ing complexity from the layering of identities and

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3�

8

Hakuin Ekaku(16�5–176�)

Edo period (1615–1�6�), Late 1750’s

H 12 ¾" × W 12 ½" (incl. mounting 60 ¾" × 1� ¾")

(32.5 cm × 32 cm, 15�.5 cm × �7.5 cm)

Three seals of artist: Rinzai seishû, Hakuin, and

Ekaku no in

Hanging scroll, ink on silk

God of Agriculture Viewing Waterfall

(Takimi Shinnô zô 瀧見神農像)

Inscription:

撃草知薬 / 劉木為犁 / 人身牛首 / 斯道神農氏

Crushing herbs to understand medicines,

uprooting trees to plow the land.

Human body and head of ox:

this is the way of the Shennong

Kusa o uchi, yaku o shiru / Ki o koroshite, suki to

nasu / Karada wa hito, kubi wa ushi / Shidô Shin-

nôshi

The exotic figure with human form and ox head

in this painting is Shennong (J. Shinnô), a legend-

ary ruler of China first mentioned by Mencius and

also known as the Emperor of Fire.1 He is said to

have taught humans a variety of abilities, includ-

ing the use of fire, the ways of agriculture, and the

knowledge of herbs and medicine. The complex

mythological status of this god is retold in numerous

sources, including his conception at the sight of a

dragon and an upbringing in the wilderness. At one

time, he is also said to have harnessed dragons in

order to measure the circumference of the earth.

Shennong’s legendary status is also emphasized by

visual media that usually depict the god with horns,

wildly unkempt hair, and clothes made of natural

leaves. He usually also holds blades of grass in his

hand or mouth, symbols of his knowledge of herbs.

A long tradition of depicting Shennong in paint-

ings and sculpture exists throughout East Asia, with

Chinese versions usually showing him in a group

image with other legendary rulers, while Japanese

artists have tended to depict him alone, seated on

a rock in wilderness. Notable Japanese depictions

of Shennong include those made by Hakuin, Sesson

Shûkei (150�–15�9), Kano Tsunenobu (1636–1713),

and Ike Taiga (1723–1776), but a whole range of

painters, carvers, and printmakers participated in

the tradition.2 Interest in the god increased during

the eighteenth century—at which time this image

was made—partly through the renewed interest in

Chinese culture, through the importation of Chinese

visual materials, and through the antiquarian interest

of Japanese sinophile cultural figures.

At the same time, this painting by Hakuin presents

us with a number of innovations in this venerable

tradition. One curious departure in this paint-

ing, which the Hakuin scholar Takeuchi Naoji has

described as possessing a strange expression for

a works from his last years,3 is the ox head and

the rope leash worn around its neck. While the ox

head was long an aspect of the literary tradition

of Shennong that emphasized a human body and

an ox head, the visual tradition has persisted in

depicting his head in mostly human form, hinting at

the ox connection through the pair of horns on his

forehead.� Hakuin’s depiction of a fully bovine face

makes that aspect explicit and marks a significant

departure from tradition—seemingly unprecedented

in the visual culture of Japan and China. Hakuin may

in part have been influenced by Hakutaku images,

where depictions of the ox-headed creature vary

between a human face and an ox-like head.5

Another unusual feature of the painting is the

placement of a seated Shennong by a waterfall.

Hakuin has in fact taken the iconography of the

waterfall-viewing Kannon Takemi Kannon and

adapted that to the Shennong. While Hakuin has

made a number of waterfall-viewing Kannon figures

with similar compositions, upon looking through

Hakuin’s extant oeuvre, it becomes apparent that

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�0

this work represents the unique example of a water-

fall composition centered about a person who is not

the Kannon. It is hard to give a specific reason for

this change in iconography, except to point to other

examples where Hakuin has excluded, merged,

and otherwise adapted iconographical features of

his subjects. In such variations we clearly see the

hand of an experimenting artist, unafraid of trying

new ideas in his paintings.6 The composition may

also relate to the unusual small, square format of

the painting, in which the god could hardly be seen

standing up, which is how Hakuin usually presented

Shennong in his paintings.7

The combination of unusual factors of this painting,

including the above-mentioned features, its appear-

ance on silk, the high state of finish and details, the

unusual square format, and the unusual calligraphic

style, point to a special occasion and purpose.

Perhaps it was made for a special customer? Hakuin

often did so, according to other documented cases.

Here we may look at the topic of this painting. We

know that it was a common yearly ritual for medi-

cal doctors and pharmacists to display an image of

Shennong at the winter solstice and to make offer-

ings to the god. And we also know that Edo-period

doctors were often wealthy collectors of art works. It

would make perfect sense for Hakuin to have made

this finely painted work on relatively costly silk for

such a person in return for a generous contribution

to Hakuin’s Shôinji Temple.

The painting is housed in a fitted kiri wood box,

certified and inscribed in 1960 by Tsûzan Sôkaku

(1�91–197�), the seventeenth abbot of Hakuin’s

temple, the Shôinji Temple, in Hara.

Published: Takeuchi Naoji. Hakuin. (Tokyo:

Chikuma Shobô, 196�), �0.

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�2

9

Watanabe Gentai(17�� – 1�22)

Edo period (1615–1�6�)

H 19 ½" × W 27 ¼" (incl. mounting 5� ¼" × 33 ½")

(�9.� cm × 69.3 cm, 13� cm × �5 cm)

Inscribed: Hen’ei

Seals: Hen and Ei

Hanging scroll, colors and ink on silk

The artist has depicted five finely-detailed horses

in a marshy meadow by a lake. Each of the horses

seems to be of a different color and type and each is

shown in a different activity: whether drinking water,

grazing, scratching its head, looking away, or simply

lying down. The season is clearly spring and the soft,

light greens of the willow branches and meadow,

as well as the light blues and grays of the lake and

far-away shores, form the stage for the bright and

assertive colors of the five horses.

The artist of this painting, Watanabe Gentai (17��–

1�22), was one of the many talented students of

the Edo-based painter Tani Bunchô (1763–1��0).

Gentai’s connection to Bunchô may be seen here in

his interest in naturalistic detail and harmonic color

patterns, as well as in his interest in contemporary

Chinese paintings, particularly the type made popu-

lar by the Qing dynasty painter Shen Nanping and

his followers. Shen traveled to Japan and, during his

short time in the country, created great interest in

his painting style which was new for the Japanese.

After his departure, he left behind a growing group

of followers, which is popularly referred to as the

Nagasaki school of painting. The inspiration if

not prototype of this particular painting was likely

a work of this school: we see the characteristics

through the strong color contrasts of the horses; the

balanced composition of the work; the lush, marshy

placement of the work; and the strong ink brushwork

of the tree trunks.

This painting seems also to be a loose adaptation

of the popular Chinese Eight Horses of Mu Wang

theme, in which eight horses of different colors and

types belonging to a legendary emperor are shown

in a marshy meadow. Typically they are shown in ex-

pressive freedom, interacting with each other in an

equine paradise, without the interference of human

beings. Three Chinese horses, however, get lost in

the translation to this particular Japanese paint-

ing, and as a result, the connection to the story of

the Chinese emperor becomes loosened, but other

elements, such as the setting and the idea of the

freedom-loving horses are kept. Gentai may have

chosen a smaller number of horses in order to better

show the individual details of the horses.

After his apprenticeship with Bunchô, Gentai started

an atelier of his own and succeeded in establishing

a smaller school by training sons and relatives, who

in turn trained their offspring. He seems to have

been successful in gaining customers during a time

of intense competition between artists, perhaps

by balancing the public’s interest in China and other

foreign countries with domestic needs, such as

paintings of animals for the various zodiac years.

This painting was very possibly created for such a

purpose, for a discriminating merchant who needed

a painting for the year of the horse.

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bamboo baskets

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�6

10

Iizuka Rôkansai(1�90–195�)

Shôwa period (1926–19�9), circa 1936–19�1

H 9 ¾" × L 10 ¼" × W 10"

(25 cm × 26 cm × 25.5 cm)

Signed: Rôkansai saku

The striking bamboo ikebana basket illustrated

here is a masterpiece by Rôkansai. The cubic form

is simple yet bold and dramatic. In keeping with

the simple form, the handles are composed of two

short cylindrical sections. The body is woven with

light-colored split bamboo in the triangular asa-no-

ha pattern and is dramatically offset by dark brown

vertical supports, which continue from the inside to

the outside and from one side to the other, crossing

each other below and thereby forming a dynamic

pattern on the bottom. The two wide flattened

bamboo sections are the most striking feature of

this basket.

It is signed on the side with an incised signature

reading »Rôkansai saku« or »made by Rôkansai.«

It comes with the original fitted sugi wood box,

which is inscribed on the top of the beveled lid

»Hanakago« or »Flower Basket.« On the inside of

the lid it is titled »Shikô« or »Four Bright Things,«

which refers to the wide bamboo strips on the four

sides; signed »Rôkansai saku« or »made by Rôkansai;«

and sealed Rôkansai. The red oval seal is consistent

with those illustrated for 1936–19�9 in Iizuka Rôkansai:

Master of Modern Bamboo Crafts (Tochigi Prefectural

Museum of Fine Arts, 19�9, pages 11�–119); the box

signature most closely matches those illustrated for

1936–�1.

For similar bamboo works by Rôkansai, see Iizuka

Rôkansai: Master of Modern Bamboo Crafts, e.g.,

item 1�, a cubic brazier (ca. 1927) and item 32, a

flower basket using a similar architecture of dark

vertical supports against a light body (ca. 1932).

Rôkansai is widely acknowledged as the greatest

Japanese basket maker of the 20th century. The

sixth son of the basket maker Hôsai I, he started out

making intricate baskets in the karamono-style but

went on to develop many new ideas and techniques.

He pioneered modern bamboo crafts and exerted

great influence on numerous post-war bamboo artists.

His works are in the collections of many institutions,

including the Tokyo National Museum of Modern Art

and Idemitsu Museum of Art.

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��

11

Iizuka Rôkansai(1�90–195�)

Taishô period (1912–1926), 1910’s

H 11 ½", D 11 ¾"

(29 cm, 30 cm)

Signed: Rôkansai

This round ikebana basket by the bamboo artist

Rôkansai is woven with darkly colored split bamboo

in the square yottsu-me pattern, here arranged

diagonally; the inside bottom is in the hexagonal

kumo-no-suajiro (spider web) pattern.

The basket is signed on the bottom with an incised

signature reading Rôkansai. It comes with a fitted

kiri wood box, which is inscribed on the top of the

beveled lid »Hanakago« or »Flower Basket.« On the

inside of the lid, he signed »Rôkansai kyû-saku« or

»made long ago by Rôkansai,« and stamped three

red seals, together reading Rôkansai. According to

Iizuka Rôkansai: Master of Modern Bamboo Crafts

(Tochigi Prefectural Museum of Fine Arts, 19�9,

pages 11�–119), this set of three red seals was used

by Rôkansai from the early 1920’s to circa 193�. The

signature is consistent with those illustrated in this

catalog of the large Rôkansai exhibition in 19�9 at

the Tochigi Prefectural Museum of Fine Arts, where

110 of his works were exhibited.

Accordingly, Rôkansai must have inscribed and signed

this box between 1920 and 193�, but the basket itself

is an earlier work by him, made probably in the late

1910‘s. The original box had been lost and he signed

this replacement box later for the owner of the basket,

using more valuable kiri wood.

For a similar bamboo basket using the same weave

in a round form, see Iizuka Rôkansai, item 5, a flower

basket from circa 192�.

For biographical details on Rôkansai, see previous

catalog entry.

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50

12

Maeda Chikubôsai I(1�72–1950)

Shôwa period (1926–19�9), circa 1930

H 16" × L 15 ¾" × W 6 ½"

(�1 cm × �0 cm × 16.� cm)

Signed: Chikubôsai kore tsukuru

According to Chikubôsai’s box inscription, this

outstanding bamboo ikebana basket is made in the

shape of a drum; it could, however, equally well be

in the shape of the full moon. Indeed, a very similar

basket is illustrated and entitled »Moon-shaped

flower basket« in Japanese Bamboo Baskets:

Masterworks of Form & Texture from the Collection

of Lloyd Cotsen (Los Angeles, Cotsen Occasional

Press, 1999), item number 91.

Apart from the dramatic design, the exceptionally

fine details using numerous weaving techniques

sets this basket apart. It is a delight to examine the

basket details up close.

The basket is signed on the bottom with an incised

signature reading »Chikubôsai kore tsukuru« or

»this made by Chikubôsai.« It comes with a copper

liner for ikebana use and with the original fitted sugi

wood box, which is inscribed on the top of the lid

»Taiko-shiki Hanakago« or »Drum-shaped Flower

Basket.« On the inside of the lid it is signed »Senyô

Kuzezato Chikubôsai-zô« or »made by Chikubôsai of

the Senyô Studio in Kuzezato« and bears a red seal

reading Chikubôsai.

Chikubôsai was one of the greatest basket makers

of the Kansai region. His son, Chikubôsai II (1917–

2003), continued the tradition and was named a Living

National Treasure for the bamboo crafts in 1995.

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52

13

Morita ChikuamiActive circa 1900–1935

Taishô period (1912–1926), circa 1920

H 2�", D 7 ½"

(61 cm, 19 cm)

Signed: Chikuami kore tsukuru

This elegant basket in the karamono-style has a tall

handle and a hexagonal body that becomes round

at the opening. It is woven using a combination of

very narrow split bamboo strips and wide lacquered

bamboo pieces.

The basket is signed on the bottom with an incised

signature reading »Chikuami kore tsukuru« or »this

made by Chikuami.« It comes with the original fit-

ted wood box, which is inscribed on the top of the

lid »Hanakago« or »Flower Basket.« On the inside

of the lid it is signed »Chikuami zô« or »made by

Chikuami« and bears a round red seal reading

Chikuami.

Chikuami was the artist name of Morita Shintarô,

who lived in Kyoto and was active from the late

Meiji to early Shôwa periods.

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5�

14

Tanabe Chikuunsai II(1910–2000)

Shôwa period (1926–19�9), circa 1950

H 23 ¾", D � ¼"

(60.5 cm, 21 cm)

Signed: Chikuunsai kore tsukuru

This tall bamboo ikebana basket in double-gourd

shape is woven with very narrow strips of split bamboo.

The attractive shape is enhanced by the superb details

throughout the basket using numerous weaving

techniques. In spite of its size, it is surprisingly light

in weight.

The basket is signed on the bottom with an incised

signature reading »Chikuunsai kore tsukuru« or »this

made by Chikuunsai.« It comes with the original

fitted kiri wood box, which is inscribed on the top

of the lid »Hyô-gata Taka-te Hanakago« or »Gourd-

shaped Flower Basket with Tall Handle.« On the

inside of the lid it is signed »Sakaifu Nansô Chikuunsai

zô« or »made by Chikuunsai of the Nansô Studio in

Sakai-fu« and bears two red seals reading »Tanabe

no in« (»seal of Tanabe«) and Chikuunsai.

The artist name Chikuunsai belongs to the Tanabe

family, one of the most important bamboo-basket

makers of Osaka. Chikuunsai I lived from 1�77 to

1937; this basket was made by his son Chikuunsai

II; he in turn passed on the artist name to his oldest

son, Chikuunsai III (b. 19�0), in 1991.

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56

15

Chikuunsai II(1910–2000)

Shôwa period (1926–19�9), dated 1969

H 9", D 1� ½"

(22.6 cm, 37 cm)

Signed: Chikuunsai zô

The illustrated large bamboo ikebana basket is

woven in the hexagonal muttsu-me pattern using

very narrow split bamboo strips. Entitled »En« or

»circle,« it was exhibited at the �th Japanese Con-

temporary Art Exhibition in 1969.

The artist signed the basket on the bottom with an

incised signature reading »Chikuunsai zô« or »made

by Chikuunsai.« It comes with the original fitted kiri

wood box, which is entitled on the top of the lid

»En« and inscribed »Kikkô-sukashi-ami Hanakago«

or »Hexagonal Open-Mesh Weave Flower Basket.«

On the inside of the lid, it bears the inscription

»Dai Hachi-kai Nihon Gendai Kôgei Bijutsu Tenrankai

Shuppin« or »Exhibited at the �th Japanese Contem-

porary Art Exhibition« and is signed »Tekisuikyo

Chikuunsai zô« or made by »Chikuunsai of the

Tekisuikyo Studio« and stamped with two red seals

reading »Tanabe no in« (»seal of Tanabe«) and

Chikuunsai.

For biographical details on Chikuunsai, see previous

catalog entry.

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ceramics

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60

Edo period (1615–1�6�), 1�th century

H 3 ¼" × L 5 ½"

(�.5 cm × 1� cm)

With fitted silk brocade pouch

and inscribed kiri wood box.

This striking Hagi tea bowl (chawan) carries with it

a long history of the tea ceremony and a complex

layering of meaning. The bowl has received its name

from a tea master and it has been handed down in

Japanese tea master collections for centuries and

comes with its set of pedigree.

The bowl was turned on the potter’s wheel as seen

in its overall symmetric form: the body curves out

gracefully from a small well-formed foot, creat-

ing rows of lines on the lower half of the bowl and

culminating in a slightly asymmetric, uneven rim.

The bowl has been immersed in a vat of glaze into

which it was dipped two or three times, as can be

seen in the uneven application of glaze close to the

foot. Some glaze was even splashed on to the foot

itself, a sign of the speed with which the application

was undertaken, adding to the sense of spontane-

ity that was highly prized by the tea connoisseurs.

Other spontaneous expressions of wabi, the tea

term that denote the sense of incompleteness and

imperfection,1 can be seen in the small circles of

unglazed areas on the side of the bowl; these could

have been bubbles in the glaze that hindered the

direct contact of the glaze to the clay surface. With

time, these imperfections have become emphasized

through the tea stains on the glaze on the inside of

the bowl, which represent evidence of appreciation

and constant use of the object within the tea world.

The stains have with time highlighted the glaze im-

perfections by forming circular stains around them.

The piece was made by a potter who was highly

aware of tea aesthetics and of the need to produce

imperfect elements within a controlled framework.

The areas of imperfection are here balanced by

areas of total control and symmetry, for example,

16

Hagi Tea Bowl, Named Usumomiji »Pale Fall Colors«

the finely carved foot with the janome kôdai, or

»snake-eye« foot, completed with a finely formed

Kugibori »carved nail« pattern in the center, formed

while turning on the potter’s wheel. The wabi aes-

thetics of incompletion are especially effective when

areas of unbalance and spontaneity are contrasted

with such areas of planned symmetry.

The name of the bowl, Usumomiji, or »pale autumn

colors,« likely refers to the unusual patterning of the

glaze, which varies in color from creamy white to

light red as one looks across the mottled surface of

the bowl. The bowl seems to have been praised for

the colors and for the poetic connotations that they

would awaken, especially in the fall tea season. The

word itself appears quite often in Japanese poetry

and many poems use the word as a marker of the

season and for creating specific settings with their

deeper implications.2 In giving names to bowls, it

was important to choose a name that would awaken

poetic connotations, either to specific poems or to

broader poetic sentiments.3

This bowl has a fascinating pedigree, as listed on

the outermost paper wrapper. The inscription to

the lower left describes the nature of the various

layers of appreciation and inscriptions that have

grown around this particular tea bowl. First of all, it

describes the »three-character ink inscription« on

the wooden box to have been written by a Hokô

甫公, which we know to be one of the artist names

used by the noted tea master, Kobori Enshu 小堀遠州

(1579–16�7).� The inscription goes on to say that a

paper attachment (kakitsuke) has a »four character

inscription« by a Sôchû, who is Kobori Sôchû Ma-

sayasu 小堀宗中政優 (17�6–1�67), the eighth genera-

tion head of the Enshû school, originally founded by

Enshû. Another layer in this trail of tea appreciation

and tea bowl ownership is provided by the unidenti-

fied writer of this inscription, who, by tradition, does

not write his own name.5 We can only assume that

he was the owner of the tea bowl after Sôchû parted

with it.

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62

It is possible to match other evidence to these asser-

tions. Enshû was known for his ability to provide

poetic names and many examples of bowls that were

named by him exist; moreover, the inscription on

the box is done in his well-known calligraphic style.

Also, Sôchû was known for his reinvigoration of the

Enshû line, which had fallen into disrepair; he was

known for his immense collection of tea utensils and

also for his unusual running script calligraphic style.6

While we do see both the Enshû-like three-character

inscription on the box and a Sôchû-like four-char-

acter inscription on a (now tattered) piece of paper

that belongs to the top of it, other elements need to

be taken into consideration before conclusions can

be made. One is a list of objects in the collection of

Enshû, the Enshû kurachô 遠州蔵帳, which is a long

list of items owned by Enshû and his son, as written

by Kobori Sôjitsu, the third generation head. Our

bowl is not listed on this document. Also, the age of

the ceramic bowl itself, is more likely to be eigh-

teenth century than seventeenth century. One pos-

sible conclusion is that the bowl was given a name

and a box by someone before Sôchû, who gave the

bowl a box in the style of Enshû. The Sôchû inscrip-

tion could be genuine and the anonymous owner

after Sôchû may have interpreted the calligraphy as

being that of Enshû.

The tea ceremony is celebrated for its ability to give

layers of meaning to objects and rituals. Sometimes

the layers harmonize with each other and at other

times there are contradictions. This bowl is a case

in point: the bowl itself has taken on layers after

frequent use over two centuries and the staining

by tea has now changed the original appearance of

the bowl and glaze. Likewise, the layering of prov-

enance provides layers of meaning surrounding the

bowl within its box: here, the link of previous owners

includes a misinterpretation of one and the lack of

identity of another. The complexity of meaning in

the tea ceremony itself is here aptly echoed in this

fine Hagi bowl that continues to echo the pale colors

of early autumn.

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6�

17

Takatori chawan

Edo period (1615–1�6�), 1�th century

H 2 ¾", D 5 ¼"

(7.2 cm, 13.5 cm)

With inscribed kiri wood box

This Takatori tea bowl (chawan) was created by the

descendants of Korean laborers taken from Korea

during the Japanese invasions in the 1590’s. The

Korean potter Palsan (later given the Japanese

name Takatori Hachizô) left Korea with his wife and

family and set up a kiln in the domain of Kuroda

Nagamasa, forming the origin of the Takatori kiln.1

In the process of the next generations, the Takatori

line of potters was in charge of a number of kilns in

the domain throughout the Edo period. At the time

of the production of this tea bowl, the third-genera-

tion Takatori Hachizô was in charge of the Higashi

Sarayama Kiln, where tea utensils were made.2 This

kiln, which was modeled on Korean climbing kilns,

is the likely source of this bowl. The Takatori pot-

ters combined Korean technology with Japanese

tea aesthetics; the first generation Hachizô even

traveled to Kyoto with his son to receive instructions

in tea ceramics from the famous tea master Kobori

Enshû (1579–16�7) and their tea ceramics bear the

traces of the tastes of the Kyoto tea masters.3

This tea bowl bears the marks of the type of clay

used at Higashi Sarayama, which was highly re-

fined to a density and strength approaching that

of porcelain.� The glazes applied on the bowl are

also typical to the Takatori tea wares; these glazes

were thick and of various colors and consistencies,

mainly produced by mixing different minerals, ashes,

and stones. The glazes were then applied to the

objects and mixed in a rich tapestry of colors. The

yellow-gold glaze forming the central glaze on this

tea bowl is called the dôkeiyû and is one of the

more famous of the Takatori glaze types. The glaze

application method is also typical for Takatori wares:

broad bands are applied and allowed to run down

the sides, producing mutations in colors where

glazes mix and a drop design along its bottom

edge. On this bowl, some areas on the outside did

not get covered with glaze. In the tea world, such

places of imperfection are considered to imbue a

tea object with its own personality; and, rather than

detractions, they are seen as the embodiment of tea

ceremony aesthetics of rusticity, incompletion, and

astringency.5

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66

18

Shino Serving Bowl

Momoyama (1573–1615) to early Edo period

(1615 - 1�6�), first half of 17th century

H 2 ¼" × L 6" × W 6"

(5.7 cm × 15.3 cm × 15.3 cm)

Stoneware with underglaze iron.

With kiri wood box inscribed Shino Perforated

Small Bowl

This small Shino bowl was made for the kaiseki sec-

tion of the tea ceremony, in which guests were served

from small dishes filled with various refined dishes.

This vessel was created through a number of sepa-

rate steps. It was initially thrown on the wheel and

then sculpted by hand. Three loop feet were then

added to the bowl and it bears traces of spur marks

on both the top and the bottom of the bowl, indicat-

ing that it was fired as a stack of smaller bowls and

dishes. The stoneware vessel was then covered with

a thick feldsparic glaze, which fired milky-white over

a simple iron decoration that had been applied with

a brush.1

The design on the upper surface of the bowl is

separated into two zones. The inner, round area is

decorated with a simple motif of three flying plovers

(chidori) on a blank ground. In Japanese visual cul-

ture, plovers are almost always paired with waves,2

and the lack of waves on this design is at first puz-

zling until one notices the fine under-glaze kugibori

»carved nail« indentation in the center of this area:

this indentation forms a single curving wave in the

middle of the three birds. The viewer is rewarded for

looking closely and the puzzle is now solved.

The second zone of decoration is on the rim. The

decoration here is formed of quickly-drawn, styl-

ized vines, curling out from two diagonally opposed

corners. Two other sides are marked with series of

parallel lines along the edges of the vessel. The fine

perforated design of round clusters are placed close

to the vines and may well represent clusters of fruit,

such as the grape.3 While the design appears simple

and spontaneous, it is in fact highly sophisticated.

Such a design could easily be imagined to have

been ordered by a tea master or artist with a keen

sense of play and visual design.�

Similar Shino bowls and dishes were often made in

sets of five and ten and used in the tea ceremony,

during the kaiseki meal.5 This particular type of bowl

would have been appreciated as a kaiseki vessel for

a number of reasons. First, as stated above, for its

visually appealing, sophisticated design. Second,

for ease of use: the central area could easily hold a

small amount of food without spilling, the three feet

giving the vessel stability. In addition, the uneven

surface of the vessel, with its heavy glaze, would

have provided a pleasantly tactile surface to hold

during the meal. Finally, the bowl would have creat-

ed an interesting temporal program: when food was

served, the food would have been in the center of

the bowl, framed by the outer zone with the design

of vines and fruit. Upon eating the food, the central

design of the plovers become gradually visible,

and, when the food was entirely gone, the indented

central wave would suddenly become visible, per-

haps accented by the food’s liquid runoff settling in

the wave-shaped indentation. The bowl carries yet

another association as both the plover / wave design

and that of the vines/grapes carry an autumnal as-

sociation. This Shino bowl would have been an ideal

vessel to serve that important guest at the autumn

tea setting.6

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6�

19

Ko-Seto Vase

Muromachi period (1392–1573), 15th century

H 9 ¾", D 6 ½"

(2�.5 cm, 16.7 cm)

Stoneware with green wood-ash glaze

With inscribed kiri wood box

This early stoneware vase stems from a Seto ware

kiln, near the present city of Seto, in present-day

Aichi Prefecture. The vase, which has been formed

on a potter’s wheel, is elegantly shaped in the

meibing shape with a gradual outward curvature

as one goes up the object. The vase ends in a firm

shoulder and a generous neck and mouth, the latter

with a large midriff. The vase has been decorated

with three sets of lines (again, while on the wheel)

on the mid-body, on the edge of the shoulder and

halfway between the second line and the mouth.

There is no stamped decoration; rather, through a

generous application of ash-glaze, small rivulets of

olive-green glaze (caused by the reductive kiln) run

down the sides of the vase.1 This particular piece is

in excellent condition with only a small chip on the

mouth that has been repaired with gold lacquer.

The Seto kiln is traditionally seen as one of the Six

Old Kilns, taken to be the six medieval kilns active

in Japan at the time. Later research has shown that

there were a much larger number of kilns active at

this time, including Suzu ware, which also appears

in this catalog. According to tradition, the Seto kiln

was founded by one man, a Katô Kagemasa, who

traveled to China in 1223 and learned the Chinese

way of producing ceramics. Upon returning to Japan

and the Seto area, he set up production here. No

matter whether a historical Katô Kagemasa existed or

not, it certainly seems true that Chinese and Korean

ceramics played a large role in the early history of the

kiln, as many of the first products were imitations of

foreign luxury objects. Tenmoku bowls from China

were imitated as were Celadon vases from Korea and

China.

The Seto kiln also seems to have been one of the

most favored kilns at the time, judging from the

Seto ware excavated throughout the country, and

it is entirely possible that the Asihikaga shogunate

government in the city of Kamakura was a close

sponsor of the kiln in its earlier days. As the gov-

ernment also largely controlled the importation of

luxury vessels from outside Japan, it made excellent

economic sense for the government to also control

the production of the Japanese imitations.

This particular vase was made in the imitation of

Chinese Yingqing ware porcelain vases from the

Jingdezhen area.2 The type of vase was the meibing

(lit. »lotus blossom«) type that were imported to

Japan at this time.3 As the Japanese potters could

not produce porcelains at the time, the next best

solution was to produce stoneware with a thick

wood-ash glaze to give the impression of a celadon

porcelain vase. These vases have in the past been

discarded by some commentators as mere imita-

tions.� Recently, however, persuasive arguments

have been made for the aesthetic values of these

remarkable objects. It is important to remember

that the act of copying in East Asia is significantly

different than that in the West, and it is likely that

the imitations were seen as acts of homage to the

luxurious imports from exotic places.5

This type of vase was used for storing liquids for

both religious and non-religious occasions. The

pronounced midriff on the neck allowed ropes and

stiff paper to be tied to the top for a close seal

over the plug. An earlier type of Ko-Seto vases with

similar forms were produced in the Kamakura period

(11�5–1392). This earlier type, however, had various

stamped patterns, whereas the type seen in this

entry was without the stamped designs and is seen

to stem from the Muromachi period (1392–1573).6

A foremost ceramic expert, Katsura Matasaburô

(1901–19�6) has certified this particular piece to

have come from the Seto kiln and to date to the

mid-Muromachi period.7 His certificate, including

the size of the vase, and his signature and seals, is

placed on the underside of the kiri box lid.�

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70

20

Suzu Jar with Paddled Design

Kamakura period (11�5–1392), 13th century

H 13 ¼", D 11 ½"

(33.5 cm, 29 cm)

Stoneware with natural ash glaze

The Suzu 珠洲 kilns were located on the northern tip

of the Noto 能登 peninsula in present-day Ishikawa

Prefecture, on the coast of the Japan Sea. The kilns

are thought to be a development of the medieval

Sueki ware culture, a type of ceramics closely related

to Korean prototypes that once spread across Japan.1

Some scholars have posited that the production of

the Suzu ware with its characteristic sandy clay, dark

gray coloring, and egg-shaped vessels, was initiated

by Korean potters that had arrived in the twelfth

century from the Korean peninsula, not very far from

the Noto area.2 Whatever the origins of the kilns, the

kilns enjoyed sponsorship by religious institutions

and aristocratic families, partly through the large

Wakayama manor on the same peninsular. Through

these connections Suzu vessels spread widely: ves-

sels have been excavated from numerous places

along the western coast of Japan, reaching as far

as southern Hokkaido. The first pieces of Suzu ware

that clearly differenciated from Sueki ware can be

placed in the twelfth century during the late Heian

period (79�–11�5) and the last pieces in the fifteenth

century during the Muromachi period (1392–1573).

After this period, the kilns were abandoned, perhaps

due to intense competition from the nearby Echizen

and Tokoname kilns.

This outstanding jar dates from the thirteenth century,

which, judging from the relatively large number of

pieces produced at this time, was a period of high

activity for the Suzu kilns.3 The pieces from this

period often display a highly developed paddling

technique (tataki 叩き) – where wooden paddles

with incised lines are beaten on the still-soft clay,

resulting in a distinct appearance, often likened to

plowing marks or pinecones. On well-designed pots,

the resulting texture alternates seamlessly between

areas of horizontal lines and diagonal lines, and this

particular pot is notable for carrying this technique

to a high point of technical sophistication. As usual

with works of this type, the outline of the jar, an

egg standing on its thin end, displays traces of the

clay coils from which the upper part of the body

was formed on top of a sculpted base. The outward-

opening short mouth of the jar is segmented into

two parallel parts and successfully counter-balances

the widening shape of the jar beneath it. This

jar does not display the heavy ash glaze of other

contemporary kilns, such as Tamba or Shigaraki,

but rather a thin glaze with traces of white spotting

from ash that fell on the parts of the body that were

exposed during the reductive firing.

A distinctive kiln mark can be seen on the shoulder

of this work in the form of three arcs that form a

circle.� Marks such as this, possibly made from the

carved end of a bamboo stick, are sometimes found

on Suzu vessels of this period. Specialists have

speculated on the exact meaning of these marks;

theories often center on possible religious functions

of the vessels.5 It is certainly possible that this

particular vessel with its sophisticated and carefully-

done design may also have been created as a com-

mission for a special religious ceremony.

The Suzu kilns have gained considerable attention

since the discovery of the kiln site in the 1950’s and

Suzu objects are now eagerly collected by museums

and collectors. Although the kilns were discontinued

during the Muromachi period, the area has since

fund new ceramic life as numerous potters have now

set up businesses in the Noto peninsula, in attempts

to renew the lost traditions of the Suzu kilns.6

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72

21

Shigaraki Jar

Muromachi period (1392–1573), 15th century

H 1� ½", D 15 ¼"

(�7 cm, 39 cm)

Stoneware with natural ash glaze

This stoneware jar stems from the Shigaraki region,

a mountainous area in the modern-day Shiga Prefec-

ture, to the southeast of Kyoto. The jar embodies a

sense of austere beauty and a tour-de-force display

of surface detail, including firing spots, stone inclu-

sions, cracks and melted minerals throughout the

vessel. The construction of this bulbous, generously

bulging jar echoes that of other jars from this period:

from its silhouette, it becomes clear that the jar

was created in four rounds of clay-coil construction,

where the clay was allowed to partially dry between

applications. The neck and mouth was added at the

end, on the strongly articulated shoulder. As the jar

was not turned on a potter’s wheel, its asymmetry

displays a complex sense of movement, partly bal-

anced by the firm base, made larger than the mouth.

Reading the surface of the jar provides us with a

close, blow-by-blow history of its firing process. The

dramatic color patterns on the jar shows us where

the jar was placed within the kiln: where it was partly

exposed directly to the fire (the dark koge spots),

where partly exposed to fire without being touched

by it (the lighter browns), and where it was placed

right next to other ceramic vessels (the light oranges).

In this last group of light spots, it is possible to locate

sections where a ceramic object next to the jar

actually touched it during firing and became fused

together – the resulting chip occurred when the two

vessels were separated after the firing. In addition,

the large amounts of ash from the burning pine

wood settled on the vessel during firing and created

a pattern of gray glazes. Here, too, it is possible to

map out the location of the jar within the kiln: from

the amount of glaze, we can see which side of the

jar faced the fire at the front of the kiln and we can

tell from areas untouched by glaze, where objects

shielded the jar from the ash-carrying wind that blew

at high speeds through the kiln. The broken mouth

of this vessel possibly also occurred through the

spontaneous accidents of the firing process.

The surface of the jar, with its warm, glowing mosaic

of earth tones and textures presents the viewer with

an exciting spectacle of spontaneous events. As

the clay used in this unpretentious country kiln was

largely unfiltered, many pieces of rocks and minerals

became exposed during the construction and the

firing. Larger pebbles appear in the surface, some-

times (in the case of feldspar and quartz) fusing and

partly melting away. Other times, producing minor

explosions during the firing, leaving a burst pattern

in the clay. Yet in other places are holes, where

pebbles were forced out of the hardening clay during

the firing process.1

The Shigaraki kiln was thought to be one of the

Six Ancient Kilns that were thought active during

medieval Japan.2 We know now from excavations

that dozens of other kilns were also active during this

time, including the Suzu kiln, and that the medieval

ceramic world was quite complex and differentiated.

Shigaraki kilns, however, were one of the kiln sites

to gain fame from an early date, partly due to its

proximity to the capital city of Kyoto, and partly due

to the many tea masters, from the sixteenth century

onwards, who actively promoted the ceramics from

this area. Prior to the discovery of the kiln by the

tea aficionados, however, the Shigaraki kilns made

unpretentious objects for local farmers, merchants,

and religious institutions.3 Their jars were used pri-

marily for storage, for storing food and seeds for the

next season, and for Buddhist rites, for example, for

burials and the storing of ritual objects.

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lacquers

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76

22

Stacked Writing Box with QuailsKôda Shûetsu (1��2–1933)

Taishô period (1912–1926), 1920’s

H 7" × L 13" × W 9"

(1� cm × 32.7 cm × 22.5 cm)

Signed: Shûetsu saku (»Made by Shûetsu«)

With fitted kiri wood box, inscribed by the artist.

This finely executed stacked writing box (suzuribako)

is composed of a lower box for paper and an upper

box for recessed ink stone and water dropper. On

the outside is the finely delineated design of seven

quails, two on the upper lid and five around the four

sides. The quails, a symbol of autumn, are crafted in

gold takamakie with a high degree of naturalism and

are shown peacefully flocking in nature, forraging for

food on the roiro mirror-black lacquer ground of the

box exterior.

The box interior is formed by a textile pattern in the

togidashi technique on a nashiji ground; the design

playfully alludes to the fine brocade silk interiors of

many writing boxes. The artist, Kôda Shûetsu, was

the author of an important book on lacquer design,

and that expertise seems to have come to good use

in deciding the particular textile pattern that would

fit with the overall design of the box.1 The forms of

the box are placed in a dynamic balance between

the angular forms of the water pourer, the ink stone,

and the outer box, and the softly rounded shapes of

the abstract flower designs and the quails.

The artist has hidden his signature inside the writ-

ing box, beneath the ink stone, which must be

removed for the identity of the artist to be known.

Kôda Shûetsu 迎田秋悦 (1��2–1933) was a major

twentieth-century Kyoto lacquer artist. He was born

into a family of lacquer artists, his father being

the fifth-generation lacquer artist Yamamoto Rihei

(1�39–190�), and he became one of the leading

lacquer artists of his generation. He actively took

part in national and regional exhibitions and in form-

ing artist organizations to further the work of fellow

lacquer artists. He was one of the artists to take part

in the influential Kôshuen (Fragrant Lacquer Garden)

under the direction of Asai Chû (1�56–1907) in 1906.

In 1927 he formed Kôgei Shunsôsha (Spring Grasses

Society of the Arts) together with Ida Kôshû and in

1930, he took was the leading force behind the for-

mation of the Kinki Shukôka Kyôkai (The Kinki-Area

Lacquer Artist Association), which dissolved follow-

ing his untimely death three years later.

Shûetsu took part in numerous major exhibitions,

starting with the exhibition in 1915 to mark the

seventh anniversary of his father’s death. In 1920,

he, together with Akazuka Jitoku (1�71–1936), took

part in the first Tokyo exhibition, which was one of

the more important exhibitions of the Taishô period

(1912–1926). And in 1932 he was selected by the

government to take part in a large government-

sponsored exhibition for export of the arts.

Shûetsu’s works are in many major institutions,

including the Tokyo National Museum.

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7�

Taishô period (1912–1926)

H 5" × L 15" × W 13"

(12.9 cm × 3�.2 cm × 32.� cm)

With fitted black lacquer kiri wood box

The anonymous designer of this spectacular lacquer

box for paper documents (ryoshibako) designed

the box with a finely detailed décor of pines and

blossoming cherry trees across its outer surfaces.

Moreover, he has divided the top cover into two

opposing sections, the lower right being occupied

by pine trees among flowering plants and the upper

left showing a misty landscape with flowering cherry

trees, pine trees, and smaller flowering plants. The

plants are detailed with the most luxurious gold

lacquer effects, including details in makie, takamakie

and kirigane techniques on kinpun and nashiji

ground.

The cover opens to reveal generous profusions of

autumnal grasses and flowers in takamakie and

kirigane on nashiji and kinpun clouds. Myriad types

of fall flowers are represented, including the hagi,

kuzu, sekichiku, Suzuki, kikyô, and otokoeshi, all

traditionally seen as symbolic plants of the autumn.

To finish the box design, the artist has had the

lacquered edges of the top and bottom halves en-

cased in heavy silver rims. No expense is spared in

producing the most luxurious effects. The only place

left devoid of design is the inside bottom, which was

purposely left bare, as this is where the documents

were meant to be stored.

The seasons of the plants were calculated to rep-

resent a contrast of the inside and outside: as the

winter and spring seasons are represented on the

outside, so the autumn season will contrast on the

inside. The beginning of the year is represented by

the buoyant spring scene on the front, while the

autumn intimates the coming end of the year. And

rather than inviting the viewer to look at individual

details, the artist has elected to go for massive ef-

fects: the rich sweeps of plants, both outside and

inside the box, stand in order to impress the over-

whelming richness of design and sheer profusion of

gold details and techniques.

23

Box with Pines and Sakura Blossoms

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�0

Taishô period (1912–1926)

H 5" × L 15 ½" × W 12 ¼"

(12.3 cm × 39.7 cm × 31 cm)

With inscribed fitted kiri wood box

Inscription on lacquer box:

Uguisu no haru »Spring of the bush warbler«

This large black lacquer box for paper documents

(ryoshibako) displays a thick takamakie décor of a

flowering plum branch surrounded by straw and

inlaid mother-of-pearl characters in the lower right

upper left corners. The flowering plum tree is a

symbol of perseverance of the tree in winter’s cold,

and of the dying winter and of the spring which is

fast approaching. The dramatic moment of triumph

against the cold is further emphasized by the stark,

mirror-black roiro background surrounding the

flowers and by the straw, which has been wrapped

around the plum tree trunk in order to keep it from

dying in the frost. The inside of the document box

has a relatively simple design of bamboo leaves by a

flowing stream, which could also be interpreted as a

winter design.

The moment of triumph for the plum is often de-

picted in the form of the uguisu or bush warbler,

perched on the branches of the flowering plum. In

this case, the bird appears to be absent, but, in fact,

the two symbols, the plum and uguisu, are united

in the form of the mother-of-pearl character for the

word uguisu, which is located next to the lower right

of the branch. Here, then, a word takes the part of

an image, and the symbolic pair is united in two

different media.

The box comes with the original kiri wood box,

which, according to an attached label, belonged

originally to the Taishô Emperor before it was given

as a present, to mark the anniversary of his death

in the spring of 1927, the second year of the new

Shôwa reign. If this is indeed the case, then the

design of the cover plays perfectly along with the

occasion: the inscription, »the spring of the bush

warbler,« refers to a new start, the regeneration of a

something old and venerable, and, here, the plum

could be seen as the ancient Japanese imperial line

and the new spring, heralded by the uguisu, is the

ascent to the throne of the new Shôwa emperor.

24

Box with Plum Blossoms

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�2

25

Kôetsu Lacquer Box with PoemIshikawa Rôseki 石川蝋石, 3rd generation (1950–)

Heisei period (19�9–present), 1996

H 3 ¼" × L � ¾" × W � ¾"

(�.2 cm × 22 cm × 22 cm)

With fitted wood box inscribed on top: Kazaribako:

Kôetsu utsushi suminoe makie

「飾箱・光悦写住ノ江蒔絵」»Ornamental Box: Copy of Kôrin’s Lacquer Suminoe.«

Inscription on side of fitted box: Heian Shishô

Rôseki zô 「平安・漆匠蝋石造」 »Made by Kyoto

Lacquer Master Rôseki«

Inscription on lacquer box:

Does my bellowed / avoid the eyes of others /

Even on dream paths / visited by night as [waves] /

Visit Suminoe [shore]? 1

Suminoe no / [kishi] ni yoru [nami] /

yoru sae ya / yume no kayoiji /

hitome yoguramu

This display box has a complex decoration and his-

tory. As for the decoration, a raging sea with wild

waves in hiramakie technique is pounding over a

shoreline carefully formed by fitted lead plates using

the ikakeji and kakewari techniques. The characters

of the poem are in silver takamakie. The poem winds

its way around the box, starting on the top and go-

ing down, right to left. The third line is placed in the

lower left corner, and the last two lines run around

the sides of the box. There are two omissions, how-

ever, as the words for kishi »rocky shore« and nami

»waves« are not included in words, but are instead

placed next to places with actual depictions of the

objects, the images taking the place of the words.

Thus the artist creates a witty and sophisticated

design where the cover speaks through lacquer,

poetry, words, and images, all in one.

The history of this box is also complex. A lacquer

box by Kôetsu (155�–1637), now lost, was the origi-

nal of this design, hence the title of this lacquer box.

Yet Rôseki did not see the original box by Kôetsu

but rather a copy that Ogata Kôrin (165�–1716) had

made of the original. This copy is now in the Seikadô

Foundation and comes with an inscription by Kôrin

saying that he saw the original box in Kôetsu’s home

in Takagamine.2 Moreover, the copy that Kôrin made

was clearly not an exact copy as we see distinct

elements of Kôrin’s pictorial style in the depiction

of the waves. Furthermore, Rôseki, when making his

copy of the Kôrin copy, also made transformations,

changing, for one thing, a writing box with utensils

to a display box. So we have a copy of a copy of an

original, where both copies changed elements of

the original.

Copying lacquer works of prior masters was a time-

honored tradition in Japan, and there are many

records of such events, partly caused by the high

incidence of fire and the likelihood of masterpieces

going entirely lost if not replicated. Documented

examples of such events include the famous set of

notes written by Kôami Nagasuki (1661–1723), when

he was asked by the Shogunate to make a faithful

copy of »a box with a plum branch design,« originally

made by Kôami Michikiyo (1�32–1500).3 Likewise,

industrialists such as Iwasaki Koyota, (the fourth

president of the Mitsubishi and one of the founders

of the Seikadô Foundation) were known for commis-

sioning copies of key works in their collections from

artists and artisans.�

The third generation Ishikawa Rôseki (1950– ), a

lacquer artist active in Kyoto today, is known for his

creative recreations of major lacquer works from

the Momoyama and early Edo periods.5 According

to the artist, he sees the act of recreating a famous

work as an act of homage to the master who origi-

nally made the work.6 Beside the obvious aesthetic

appeal and high level of technical craftsmanship of

his version of Kôetsu and Kôrin, the present work is

important for illustrating the process of transferring

(and altering) designs of older masterpieces, and

the act of creating, in the process, new visions in art.7

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signatures and sealsReproduced actual size

Nr. 5 left

Nr. 5 right Nr. 7

Nr. 9Nr. �

Nr. 10

Nr. 12

Nr. 22

Nr. 11

Nr. 13

Nr. 1� Nr. 15

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Nr. 12

Nr. 13 Nr. 1�

Nr. 16

Nr. 19Nr. 25

Nr. 2�

box inscriptionsReproduced half size

Nr. 11

Nr. �

Nr. 10

Nr. 15

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Nr. 1 Flowers of the Four Seasons

1 See Kôno Motoaki. Ogata Kôrin. Nihon bijutsu

kaiga zenshû, vol. 17. (Tokyo: Shûeisha, 1976), ill. 17;

Minamoto Toyomune and Hashimoto Ayako, eds.

Tawaraya Sôtatsu. Nihon bijutsu kaiga zenshû, vol. 1�.

(Tokyo: Shûeisha, 1976), cat nr. �6; Takeda, Tsuneo,

et al. Nihon byôbue shûsei. (Tokyo: Kôdansha,

1977–�1), VII, 51 and 95 / 6; and Yamane Yûzô and

Kobayashi Tadashi, eds. Nihon no bi: Rimpa ten

zuroku. (Tokyo: NHK Promotion, 1996), cat. nr. 17.

Nr. 3 Fan Screen with Scenes from the Tales of Ise

1 Minamoto Toyomune and Hashimoto Ayako,

eds. Tawaraya Sôtatsu. Nihon bijutsu kaiga zenshû,

vol. 1�. (Tokyo: Shûeisha, 1976), cat nrs. �–12 and 23.

2 A diary entry from 1�3� by Fushimi no Miya Sada-

fusa, in his Kanmon gyoki mentions such a screen,

with 5� fans pasted on a screen with a depiction of

flowing water. See also Minamoto and Hashimoto,

cat. nr. ��, for an example by Sôtatsu.

3 Yamane Yûzô and Kobayashi Tadashi, eds. Nihon

no bi: Rimpa ten zuroku. (Tokyo: NHK Promotion,

1996), cat. nr. 16. Other examples are fan screens

where all fans had depictions of or allusions to

famous sites.

Nr. 4 Cranes of Summer and Autumn

1「土佐将監光起筆」(Tosa shôgen Mitsuoki hitsu)

Nr. 5 Four Elegant Pastimes

1 For images of the »Hikone Screen,« see, Hikonejô

Hakubutsukan, ed. Ii-ke denrai no meihô: kinsei

daimyô no bi to kokoro. (Hikone: Hikone-shi Kyôiku

Iinkai, 1993), �2–5.

2 See also Ishida Yoshiya and Yamamoto Yukari, eds.

Delightful Pursuits: Highlights from the Lee

Institute for Japanese Art at the Clark Center.

(Tokyo: Nihon Keizai Shimbun, 2002), 96–7.

3 See reference in Gôke, vol. 1, 211 and Yoshiya and

Yamamoto, 97.

Nr. 6 Flower Viewing in the Pleasure Quarters

1 See Asano Shûgô’s article in Kobayashi Tadashi,

ed. Manno Bijutsukan, Ukiyoe nikuhitsu taikan, vol. 7.

(Tokyo: Kodansha, 1996), cat. nr. 32. This type of

early fire-extinguisher was common to the Yoshiwara

district. However, the identity should not be identi-

fied too firmly as the Yoshiwara, since the artist may

also be describing an expansive restaurant with

garden, establishments that were gaining popular-

ity at this time, or he may be describing a generic

pleasure quarter, of which there were many, not only

in Edo and the eastern regions, but also in western

Japan, from where the artist originally came.

2 Also called Takeda Harunobu 竹田春信 and

Koga bikô 『古画備考』has Hasegawa Mitsunobu

長谷川光信. Another well used artist name was

Shôsuiken 松翠軒. Eishun had a very long career, an-

chored by an early handscroll dated 170� (illustrated

in Kokka �76) and works dated up to 1763. See also

Shimada Shûjirô, ed. Zaigai hihô. 6 vols. (Tokyo:

Gakushû Kenkyûsha, 1969), 2, 39, for a discussion of

this artist.

3 See Shimada, 1, ill. 3�; and also a handscroll illus-

trated in Kokka �76.

Nr. 7 Hakuin Ekaku: Daruma

1 The full title of the sutra is『大乗理趣六波羅蜜多経』and the above phrase appears as the eight rule in a

set of ten admonitions for Buddhist followers:

「八者常為心師不師於心」T. �.�9�b. This influential

notes

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�7

phrase reoccurs in numerous other Japanese Bud-

dhist writings, for example, in Nichiren’s »Reply to

the Lay Monk Soya« 『曽谷入道殿御返事』.

2 For a study on the legendary nature and historicity

of Bodhidharma, see Yanagida Seizan. Daruma.

(Tokyo: Kôdansha, 19�1).

3 The ink was allowed to pool and naturally formed

concentric circles around small pieces of unground

ink. The pooling effect can also be seen within the

characters of the inscription.

4 See, for example, Takeuchi Naoji. Hakuin.

(Tokyo: Chikuma Shobô, 196�), 332–33�, and 337,

and Morita Shiryû. Bokubi Tokushû: Hakuin Bokuseki.

(Kyoto: Bokubisha, 19�0), 150.

5 See, for example, Jan Fontain and Money Hick-

man. Zen: Painting & Calligraphy. (Boston: Museum

of Fine Arts, 1970), 102–3.

6 See, Takeuchi, addendum, 9; Fontain and Hickman,

103; Katô Shôshun and Fukushima Shun’ô. Zenga no

sekai. (Kyoto: Tankôsha, 197�), 36, �1, 99, 159, and

1�5; and Zen Bunka Kenkyûjo. Bodhidharma Exhibi-

tion. (Tokyo: Isetan, 19��), cat. nr. 26, 31–33, and ��.

7 Takeuchi, �6.

8 See Takeuchi, Addendum, 9 and also ibid, cat

nr. 33� for a Menpeki Daruma in the gu character

that had been in Gudô’s private collection.

Nr. 8 Hakuin Ekaku: God of Agriculture

1 Shennong was described the fist time in a �th

century BCE text, 『滕文公章句』.He was further

elaborated by the Tang historian Sima Qian 司馬貞

(1�5–90 BCE) in his 『史記補・三皇本紀』, where he

is first described as having detailed knowledge of

medicine and the hundred medicinal herbs.

2 See images, for example, in Nihon Ishi Gakkai, ed.

Zuroku Nihon iji shiryô shûsei (Tokyo: Mitsui Shobô,

19�1), vol. 5, 11–15.

3 Takeuchi Naoji. Hakuin. (Tokyo: Chikuma Shobô,

196�), Addendum, 1�.

4 For example, the early 1�th century encyclopedic

publication, Terashima Ryôan. Wakan sansai zue.

(Tokyo: Tokyo Bijutsu, 1970), vol. 1, 202, describe him

in a text, as having a head of an ox.

5 For Hakuin’s visions of the Hakutaku, see

Takeuchi, �0–�1. See also current Hakutaku research

by Donald Harper.

6 The creative changes within Hakuin’s Hamaguri

Kannon paintings is the subject of an upcoming

article by the author.

7 Besides this image, at least three Hakuin depic-

tions of Shennong are known to be extant: two are

depicted in Takeuchi, 7� and 79 and a third exists in

the Shin-wa’an Collection, Japan.

Nr. 16 Hagi Tea Bowl, Named Usumomiji 

»Pale Fall Colors«

1 For a discussion of wabi aesthetics, see Haga,

Kôshirô, »The Wabi Aesthetic throughout the Ages«

in Tea in Japan: Essays on the History of Chanoyu.

Kumakura Isao and Paul Varley, eds. Honolulu:

University of Hawai’i Press, 199�, 195–230.

2 For example, a poem by Nozawa Bonchô (16�0?–

171�) in Bashô’s anthology Saruminoshû (1691,

vol. 3): »Hada samushi takekiri yama no usumomiji«

(my skin grows cold / the pale autumn colors / of the

bamboo cutters’ mountains.« In this case, the words

refer to the season: as bamboo are typically cut

down in the eighth month, when the fall colors are

not yet fully developed, hence »pale.« The sense of

paleness also implies a sense of distance, to the far-

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��

away bamboos and the workers who cut them.

3 For a useful discussion of this phenomenon, see

Yagi Ichio. »Uta-mei: The Poetic Names of Tea Uten-

sils.« Chanoyu Quarterly �3 (1996), 16–�0.

4 See, for example, the secret records of Enshû,

preserved at the Secret Transmissions of Hokô

甫公伝書, one of the »four tea transmissions«

Chadô shiso densho 茶道四祖伝書. Published in

the Chadô koten sôsho 茶道古典叢書 series, edited

by Matsuya Hisashige, Matsuyama Yonetarô, and

Kumakura Isao (Kyoto: Shibunkaku, 197�).

5 For the various traditions associated with the

inscriptions on boxes and documents, see two

articles by Louise Allison Cort. »Looking at White

Dew.« Chanoyu Quarterly �3 (19�5), 36–��, and

»The Kizaemon Teabowl Reconsidered: The Making

of a Masterpiece.« Chanoyu Quarterly 71 (1992),

7–30.

6 For examples of the two, see Oda Eiichi. Chadô no

hako to hakogakii (Kyoto: Tankôsha, 2003), 9�–5.

Nr. 17 Takatori Tea Bowl

1 Many Japanese warlords took Korean potters and

other laborers with them back to Japan. For ex-

ample, the daimyô of Hirado, Satsuma, Nabeshima

took with them 125, �0, and »a large number« of

Korean laborers, there amongst potters. For details

on the Korean Takatori potters, see Andrew Maske.

»The Continental Origins of Takatori Ware: The

Introduction of Korean Potters and Technology to

Japan through the Invasions of 1592–159�.« Trans-

actions of the Asiatic Society of Japan �th ser., 9

(199�), �3–61. Andrew Maske posits that, since Palsan

left Korea with his family and received a generous

stipend, he must have left voluntarily. However, this

does not necessarily follow.

2 In contrast to the Nishi Sarayama, which made

utilitarian objects. For details, see Takeshi Nagatake.

Agano, Takatori. (Tokyo: Heibonsha, 1975), �5–95

and 136–1�0; and Andrew Maske. »A Brief History

of Takatori Ware.« Originally published on Morgan

Pitelka’s Japanese Ceramics website. See also his

upcoming book: Takatori Ware: Potters and Patrons

in Edo Japan. (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University

Council on East Asian Studies Publications, 2006).

3 Nagatake, 116–7, 13�.

4 Maske, »A Brief History.«

5 For a discussion of tea aesthetics, see Haga,

Kôshirô, »The Wabi Aesthetic throughout the Ages«

in Tea in Japan: Essays on the History of Chanoyu.

Kumakura, Isao and Paul Varley, eds. Honolulu:

University of Hawai’i Press, 199�, 195–230

Nr. 18 Shino Serving Bowl

1 Shino ware is thought to have been the first ceramic

type in Japan to have decoration applied by brush.

2 Influence of Kakinomoto Hitomaro and his poem

in the Manyôshû: »O plovers, flying over the evening

waves, / On the lake of Ômi, / When you cry, my heart

grows heavy, / With memories of by-gone days.«

「淡海の海夕波千鳥汝が鳴けば心もしのにいにしへ思ほゆ」Nippon Gakujutsu Shinkôkai. The Manyôshû.

(New York and London: Columbia University Press,

1965), 50.

3 The grape was a non-native plant, but was well-

known through its appearance in Chinese paintings

and through references in classical Chinese litera-

ture. Another possibility is the yamabudô, a native

Japanese vinous plant with small fruits, somewhat

similar to the grape.

4 Japanese scholars have claimed that the Shino

designs derive entirely from native sources. See, for

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�9

example, Tadanari Mitsuoka. »Momoyama jidai no

tôgei.« Sekai tôki kôza. Nihon section. (Tokyo:

Yûzankaku, 1972), 2, 2, 1�2. Japanese sources do

seem to predominate, and this bowl is such an ex-

ample. However, other sources, such as the imported

Chinese Tianqi porcelain plates may also have influ-

ences Shino designs through their simply drawn, but

sophisticated designs, especially as they were also

used in the kaiseki section of the tea ceremony.

5 Similar bowls and dishes can be seen in many

museums, for example, Barbara Brennan Ford and

Oliver Impey. Japanese Art from the Getty Collec-

tion in The Metropolitan Museum. (New York: The

Metropolitan Museum of Art, 19�9), 53; Lorna Price,

ed. A Thousand Cranes: Treasures of Japanese Art.

(Seattle: Seattle Art Museum, 19�7), 20�–5; Edmund

Capon, et al. Japan: Masterpieces from the Idemitsu

Collection. (Sydney: International Cultural Corporation

of Australia, 19�2), 136–7; and Yoshiko Kakudo. The

Art of Japan: Masterworks in the Asian Art Museum

of San Francisco. (San Francisco: Asian Art Museum

and Chronicle Books, 1991), 166–9.

6 For an English-language summary of the kaiseki

meal, see Hiroichi Tsutsui. »The History of the Kaiseki

Meal.« Chanoyu Quarterly 78 (199�), 7–�6.

Nr. 19 Ko-Seto Vase

1 In an oxidizing kiln, the glaze would turn dark

olive brown. See color examples of both types in:

Joe Earle, ed. The Toshiba Gallery: Japanese Art

and Design. (London: Victoria and Albert Museum,

19�6), ills. 11 and 12.

2 A number of other similarly-shaped vases were

made from other models, such as vases from China

and Korea. Points of differentiation were the size

and form of the mouth and the slope of the shoulder.

See the various styles in Okuda Naoshige. Ko-Seto.

Nihon tôji taikan, vol. 6. (Tokyo: Heibonsha, 19�9),

ills. 1�–27

3 See example excavated at Ehime Castle in Tsugio

Mikami. The Art of Japanese Ceramics. (New York

and Tokyo: Weatherhill, 1972), �2.

4 Soame Jenyns writes: »…Seto kilns’ attempts to

copy these [Chinese] celadon wares were a failure. It

was impossible to imitate these successfully with the

clay that was available. They only achieved a brownish

olive-green glaze, which, owing to the over-lavish

application of wood ash, coagulated and ran down

the surface of the vessels in rivulets, giving them a

curiously mottled and wrinkled appearance.«

Japanese Pottery. (London: Faber and Faber, 197�), �1.

5 See, for the aesthetics of imitation Koga Kenzô,

»Utsushi: The Aesthetics of Imitation.« Chanoyu

Quarterly 67 (1991), 7–3�.

6 Numerous examples of both types can be found

in museum collections. For the Kamakura types, see:

Barbara Brennan Ford and Oliver Impey. Japanese

Art from the Getty Collection in The Metropolitan

Museum. (New York: The Metropolitan Museum of

Art, 19�9), ��; Okuda Naoshige. Ko-Seto. Nihon tôji

taikan, vol. 6. (Tokyo: Heibonsha, 19�9), ills. 1�–27;

Hakone Museum of Art. Hakone Bijutsukan: kanshô

tebiki. (Atami: MOA Museum of Art, 19�2), ill. 22;

and Lorna Price, ed. A Thousand Cranes: Treasures

of Japanese Art. (Seattle: Seattle Art Museum,

19�7), 200. Examples of the Muromachi type can be

seen in: Edmund Capon, et al. Japan: Masterpieces

from the Idemitsu Collection. (Sydney: International

Cultural Corporation of Australia, 19�2), 130–1;

and Louise Allison Cort. Japanese Collections in

the Freer Gallery of Art: Seto and Mino Ceramics.

(Washington DC: Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian

Institution, 1992), 62–�.

7 Katsura wrote over thirty books on older Japa-

nese ceramics and was seen as the world’s greatest

authority on old Bizen ware.

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90

8 The older inscription on the lid misdates the vase

to the Kamakura period. It also states that the vase

stems from an excavation.

Nr. 20 Suzu Jar with Paddled Design

1 For a thorough discussion of this question, refer to

Yoshioka Yasunobu. Chûsei sueki no kenkyû. (Tokyo:

Yoshikawa Kobunkan, 199�).

2 Sawada posits that the Korean potters brought the

tataki technique with them to the Noto peninsular.

Sazawa Yoshiharu, Tokoname, Atsumi, Echizen, Suzu.

Nihon tôji taikei. Vol. 7. (Tokyo: Heibonsha, 19�9),

p. 125.

3 Other examples of this period can be seen in

Sazawa, ill. ��–�5; Gotô Art Museum, Hokuriku no

kotô: Echizen, Suzu. (Tokyo: Nihon Kokusai Bijutsu

Sentâ, 19�5), ills 7�–�1. Hakone Museum of Art.

Hakone Bijutsukan: kanshô tebiki. (Atami: MOA

Museum of Art, 19�2), ill. 25. See also the collection

of the Suzuyaki Shiryôkan, Ishikawa Prefecture.

4 A similar kiln mark formed of three circles can be

seen in Gotô, ill. 79, and in Yoshioka, �0� (113–5)

and �10 (172).

5 Sawada suggests that the marks were intended as

marks or devotion or as specific prayers. Some jars

were indeed also used as containers for sutra burials.

Sawada, 125–6.

6 A museum now stands in the area: the Suzuyaki

Shiryôkan offers visitors and locals publications and

tours of the local history, ceramic traditions, and

excavated objects—while showing the works of con-

temporary artists. A clear attempt is made to unite

the old and new traditions of Suzu ware.

Nr. 21 Shigaraki Jar

1 Two jars with almost exactly the same forms, firing

patterns, and proportions can be seen in Mitsuoka

Tadanari. Shigaraki Iga. Nihon tôji taikei, vol. �.

(Tokyo: Heibonsha, 19�9), ill. 6, and Louise Allison

Cort. Shigaraki, Potters’ Valley. (Tokyo, New York,

and San Francisco: Kodansha International, 1979), ill. 2.

2 The Shigaraki area saw the production of sueki

ware from the fifth to the twelfth centuries. The

exact nature of contact between the sueki ware

produced in the area and the succeeding Shigaraki-

type ceramics has not been established. Although a

large number of ancient kilns have been excavated

in the Shigaraki, none of the kilns of the Shigaraki-

type predate the Muromachi period. See Masahiko

Kawahara. Shigaraki. Nihon tôji zenshû, vol. 12.

(Tokyo: Chûô Kôransha, 1977), 50.

3 For examples of Shigaraki Jars from the same

period in museum collections, see: Barbara Brennan

Ford and Oliver Impey. Japanese Art from the Getty

Collection in The Metropolitan Museum. (New York:

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 19�9), �6–�7;

Hakone Museum of Art. Hakone Bijutsukan: kanshô

tebiki. (Atami: MOA Museum of Art, 19�2), ills. 31–35;

Lorna Price, ed. A Thousand Cranes: Treasures of

Japanese Art. (Seattle: Seattle Art Museum, 19�7),

200–201; Edmund Capon, et al. Japan: Masterpieces

from the Idemitsu Collection. (Sydney: International

Cultural Corporation of Australia, 19�2), 126–7; and

Joe Earle, ed. The Toshiba Gallery: Japanese Art

and Design. (London: Victoria and Albert Museum,

19�6), 36–37.

Nr. 22 Stacked Writing Box with Quails

1 Together with younger brother Gôda Katei

(1��6–1961), wrote the Kyô makie monyôshû

『京蒔絵文様集』 (Kyoto Lacquer Design Collec-

tion), published posthumously by the Kyoto pub-

lisher Tankôsha in 19�0.

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91

Nr. 25 Kôetsu Lacquer Box with Poem

1 Poem 559 in the Kokin wakashû. Above translation

by Helen Craig McCullough in Kokin Wakashû: The

First Imperial Anthology. (Stanford: Stanford Univer-

sity Press, 19�5), 127.

2 See, for example, Seikadô Foundation. Seikadô

Art Treasures. 2 vols. (Tokyo: Seikadô Foundation,

1992), I, ill. 170 and II, ��–�9.

3 These notes were themselves copied by Shibata

Zeshin and we now have the copies of the notes, but

not the originals, which are presumed to have been

lost to fire. See Bijutsu Kenkyû 99 (19�0), �95–509

and Andrew Pekarik. Japanese Lacquer, 1600–1900.

(New York: Metropolitan Museum of Art, 19�0),

121–3.

4 See, for example, Christine Guth. Art, Tea, and

Industry. (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1993).

5 Ishikawa Kometarô, the first generation Rôseki

established his workshop in central Kyoto during

1��5 and was active until 19��. Ishikawa Yasuji, the

second generation relocated the shop to its present

location in Fushimi, where the third generation

Ishikawa Kôji became head of the workshop in 1992.

6 Personal communication with the artist.

7 For the aesthetics of recreating famous works, see

Koga Kenzô, »Utsushi: The Aesthetics of Imitation.«

Chanoyu Quarterly 67 (1991), 7–3�.

Page 96: Japanese Paintings and Works of Art

92

Capon, Edmund, et al. Japan: Masterpieces from

the Idemitsu Collection. Sydney: International

Cultural Corporation of Australia, 19�2.

Cort, Louise Allison. Japanese Collections in the

Freer Gallery of Art: Seto and Mino Ceramics.

Washington DC: Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian

Institution, 1992.

Cort, Louise Allison. »The Kizaemon Teabowl Recon-

sidered: The Making of a Masterpiece.« Chanoyu

Quarterly 71 (1992), 7–30.

Cort, Louise Allison. »Looking at White Dew.«

Chanoyu Quarterly �3 (19�5), 36–��.

Cort, Louise Allison. Shigaraki, Potters’ Valley.

Tokyo, New York, and San Francisco: Kodansha

International, 1979.

Earle, Joe, ed. The Toshiba Gallery: Japanese Art

and Design. London: Victoria and Albert Museum,

19�6.

Fontain, Jan and Money Hickman. Zen: Painting &

Calligraphy. Boston: Museum of Fine Arts, 1970.

Ford, Barbara Brennan and Oliver Impey. Japanese

Art from the Getty Collection in the Metropolitan

Museum. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of

Art, 19�9.

Gôke Tadaomi, ed. Shibata Zeshin meihinshû:

Bakumatsu kaikaki no shikkô kaiga. 2 vols. Tokyo:

Gakken, 19�1

Gotô Art Museum, Hokuriku no kotô: Echizen, Suzu.

Tokyo: Nihon Kokusai Bijutsu Sentâ, 19�5.

Haga Kôshirô. »The Wabi Aesthetic throughout the

Ages« in Tea in Japan: Essays on the History of

Chanoyu. Kumakura Isao and Paul Varley, eds.

Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 199�, 195–230.

Hakone Museum of Art. Hakone Bijutsukan: kanshô

tebiki. Atami: MOA Museum of Art, 19�2.

Kakudo Yoshiko. The Art of Japan: Masterworks in

the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco.

San Francisco: Asian Art Museum and Chronicle

Books, 1991.

Katô Shôshun and Fukushima Shun’ô. Zenga no

sekai. Kyoto: Tankôsha, 197�.

Kawahara Masahiko. Shigaraki. Nihon tôji zenshû,

vol. 12. Tokyo: Chûô Kôransha, 1977.

Kobayashi Tadashi, ed. Manno Bijutsukan, Ukiyoe

nikuhitsu taikan, vol. 7 (Tokyo: Kodansha, 1996)

Koga Kenzô. »Utsushi: The Aesthetics of Imitation.«

Chanoyu Quarterly 67 (1991), 7–3�.

Kumakura Isao, Matsuya Hisashige, and Matsuyama

Yonetarô, eds. Chadô koten sôsho. Kyoto:

Shibunkaku, 197�.

Maske, Andrew. »A Brief History of Takatori Ware.«

Originally published on Morgan Pitelka’s Japanese

Ceramics website.

Maske, Andrew. »The Continental Origins of

Takatori Ware: The Introduction of Korean Potters

and Technology to Japan through the Invasions of

1592–159�.« Transactions of the Asiatic Society of

Japan �th ser., 9 (199�), �3–61.

Maske, Andrew. Takatori Ware: Potters and Patrons

in Edo Japan. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University

Council on East Asian Studies Publications, 2006,

forthcoming.

Mikami Tsugio. The Art of Japanese Ceramics.

New York and Tokyo: Weatherhill, 1972.

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Page 97: Japanese Paintings and Works of Art

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1972.

Mitsuoka Tadanari. Shigaraki Iga. Nihon tôji taikei,

vol. �. Tokyo: Heibonsha, 19�9.

Morita Shiryû. Bokubi Tokushû: Hakuin Bokuseki.

Kyoto: Bokubisha, 19�0.

Nagatake Takeshi. Agano, Takatori. Tokyo:

Heibonsha, 1975.

Newland, Joseph N., ed. Japanese Bamboo Baskets:

Masterworks of Form & Texture from the Collection

of Lloyd Cotsen. Los Angeles: Cotsen Occasional

Press, 1999

Nihon Ishi Gakkai, ed. Zuroku Nihon iji shiryô shûsei

Tokyo: Mitsui Shobô, 19�1.

Nihon Keizai Shinbun, Inc., ed. Bamboo Masterworks:

Japanese Baskets from the Lloyd Cotsen Collection.

Tokyo: Nihon Keizai Shinbun, Inc., 2003

Oda Eiichi. Chadô no hako to hakogaki. Kyoto:

Tankôsha, 2003.

Okuda Naoshige. Ko-Seto. Nihon tôji taikan, vol. 6.

Tokyo: Heibonsha, 19�9.

Price, Lorna, ed. A Thousand Cranes: Treasures of

Japanese Art. Seattle: Seattle Art Museum, 19�7.

Sazawa Yoshiharu, Tokoname, Atsumi, Echizen, Suzu.

Nihon tôji taikei. Vol. 7. Tokyo: Heibonsha, 19�9.

Takeuchi Naoji. Hakuin. Tokyo: Chikuma Shobô,

196�.

Terashima Ryôan. Wakan sansai zue. Tokyo: Tokyo

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