Catalog: Vintage Arts: Regional Art: Asian (81)

Latticed windows of gold shine softly through the translucent blue glaze of this shapely vase by Kutani Master Matsumoto Saichi enclosed in the original signed wooden box. The vase is 11 inches (28 cm) tall, and in excellent condition, dating circa 1985, a time of upheaval in the artist life where he established a wood fired climbing kiln in his new home village of Yoshinodani. Saichi comes from a distinguished line of potters, his Father being Sahei and grandfather Sataro. Both were prominent figures in Kutani. Upon graduation from the Kanazawa Institute of Fine Art, he followed in the footsteps of so many greats like Hamada Shoji and Kawai Kanjiro by studying in Kyoto at the National Ceramic Research Institute before returning to Kanazawa. He was first accepted into the Nitten in 1952 (the piece exhibited was purchased by the Tokyo Governemnt), and was awarded on numerous occasions, including the grand prize there in both 1985 and 1988. He was also recipient of prizes at the Asahi Togei Ten Ceramic Exhibition, Kofukai-Ten and Kutani Dento Kogei Ten (Traditional Crafts Exhibition of Kutani, Grand prize). He has a list of exhibitions which goes beyond the scope of this description, and is in the collection of the Ishikawa Prefectural Museum of Art among others.

A thin roughly textured plate by avant garde Yagi Kazuo titled cryptically Nanbanzara (The Southern Barbarians Plate) and enclosed in a fine Shiho Kiri-wood box endorsed by his son Yagi Akira. It is 10 inches (26 cm) diameter and in fine condition.
Volumes have been written about pioneering artist Yagi Kazuo (1918-1979) and I am sure he needs no introduction. His birth on Independence Day seems to have been a portent of things to come. He was the son of the ceramicist Yagi Isso, and grew up surrounded by the characters of the Goja-zaka pottery world of Kyoto, living just down the street from Greats like Kawai Kanjiro and Kiyomizu Rokubei. He graduated the sculpture department of the Kyoto Municipal School of Art in 1937, and went on to further study under Numata Ichiga at the Kyoto Ceramics Research Facility. It was in 1948, that along with Kumakura Junkichi, Hikaru Yamada and Suzuki Osamu, he founded the influential Sodeisha (Crawling Through Mud Association), a group of revolutionary post war ceramic artists whose influence remains strong today. The basis of this unit was complete disposal of function in favor of form. This group and other contemporary groups (Sekidosha etc) began the rivalry between function and form which has defined Japanese ceramic art for half a century. He taught at the Kyoto Municipal University of Art for much of his life. Works by this artist are held in innumerable public and private collections throughout the world.

A bottle form vase by important 20th century artist Yagi Kazuo enclosed in the original signed wooden box. The vase is 4 x 4-1/2 x 7-1/2 inches (10 x 11.5 x 19 cm) and in excellent condition.
Volumes have been written about pioneering artist Yagi Kazuo (1918-1979) and I am sure he needs no introduction. His birth on Independence Day seems to have been a portent of things to come. He was the son of the ceramicist Yagi Isso, and grew up surrounded by the characters of the Goja-zaka pottery world of Kyoto, living just down the street from Greats like Kawai Kanjiro and Kiyomizu Rokubei. He graduated the sculpture department of the Kyoto Municipal School of Art in 1937, and went on to further study under Numata Ichiga at the Kyoto Ceramics Research Facility. It was in 1948, that along with Kumakura Junkichi, Hikaru Yamada and Suzuki Osamu, he founded the influential Sodeisha (Crawling Through Mud Association), a group of revolutionary post war ceramic artists whose influence remains strong today. The basis of this unit was complete disposal of function in favor of form. This group and other contemporary groups (Sekidosha etc) began the rivalry which has defined Japanese ceramic art for half a century. He taught at the Kyoto Municipal University of Art for much of his life. Works by this artist are held in innumerable public and private collections throughout the world.

A sizable rectangular platter covered in pale mottled earth-toned glaze by Shigeya Iwabuchi (1925-1993) enclosed in the original signed wooden box. A simple slab of clay, 1 inch (2.2 cm) thick, curled up in the corners. The simplicity is refreshing, the disparate surface natural and cool to the eye. It measures 16 by 11-1/2 inches (40 x 30 cm) and is in perfect condition. Shigeya was born in 1925 in Kyoto. He graduated the Kyoto Ceramics division of the Kyoto Industrial Research School, and then moved to the ceramics department of the Kyoto University of Art, finally studying under Living National Treasures Kondo Yuzo and Tomimoto Kenkichi. He has been displayed at The Kyoto Municipal Museum of Modern Art, Asahi Togei Ten and consistently at the Nihon Dento Kogei Ten among others. This piece dates circa 1970.

A deep, almost bulbous, Wan-gata Chawan by Ueda Tsuneji Titled Kikumon, or Chrysanthemum, enclosed in the original signed wooden box. The large bowl is covered in speckled green glaze turning blue on the lower edges, with a bodacious mum in blue and black. It measures 5-1/2 inches (14 cm) diameter, the slightly tapered rim just over 3 inches (8cm) tall. Ueda Tsuneji (1914-1987) was born the second son of a Kimono maker in Kyoto, the designs seen in his youth having a lasting impression on his work. He graduated from the Kyoto Industrial School of Ceramics and established his own kiln Kinozarayama in 1936. In 1955 he discipled for two years under Kawai Kanjiro; becoming a recognized master of Neriage technique. His work is in the permanent collection of the Japan Folk Craft Museum.

Here is an amazing vase by the most sought after of all Japanese potters, Kawai Kanjiro dating from the 1940s, enclosed in a fine kiri box endorsed by the Kawai Kanjiro Museum. The box is signed Kanjiro Saku, Gosu Hana-ire Hentsubo, Kawai Koha (Made by Kawai Kanjiro, a Gosu blue flower vase of altered urn shape, endorsed by Kawai Koha. Koha is Kanjiros daughter, and the current head of the Kawai Kanjiro Museum. The stately composure of its dramatic silhouette is surpassed only by the striking flashes of color dashed across the blue surface. Subtle yet seeming to speak of an excess of energy, the vase epitomizes work by this preeminent artist. The trapezoidal base rises to an elongated ovular center, from which extends a sharpened angular mouth. It is difficult to describe the power of this piece; one must hold it to truly appreciate the brilliance of its artistry. The vase is 8 inches (21 cm) tall, 5-1/2 by 4-1/2 inches (11 x 14 cm) across and is in perfect condition. Kanjiro was a true artist by nature, and together with Hamada Shoji, set a pattern of study for modern potters. After graduating the Tokyo School of Industrial Design, he came to study in Kyoto, eventually establishing his own kiln on the Gojo-no-Saka (It remains standing today and is a must see for anyone visiting Kyoto). Together with compatriots Hamada Shoji and Bernard Leach (with whom he traveled throughout Asia) established the modern Mingei movement in ceramics, the most influential ceramics movement in the 20th century. His research on glazes (of which he developed thousands over a lifetime of work) remains influential as well. Refusing to be limited to ceramics, Kanjiro also worked in bronze, wood and paint. An interesting final note on this unusual artist, when offered the title of Living National Treasure, an honor bestowed on very few, he declined.

A perfect example of why Shigaraki is one of Japans most popular ceramic styles; a large tsubo urn covered in Hai-yu ash glaze by Yamamoto Ryuzan, enclosed in the original signed wooden box. Thick glaze covers the shoulder and runs in glassy rivulets down the charred front, while the back of the Tsubo, positioned away from the flame, remains pale white. Bidoro, flying ash all over with a dark kutsuki on front and brittle molten ash-charring at the base. On a small base, the piece leans slightly to one side, the natural presence entirely without pretense yet not lacking at all in impact. The tsubo is 14 inches (35 cm) tall, 12 inches (35 cm) diameter and in excellent condition.

A large color splashed charger by one of Kyotos more original artists Tsuboi Asuka enclosed in the original signed wooden box. The vessel has a narrow foot with steadily rising sides creating a light airy feel; sheet white clay covered in green glass interspersed with runs of opaque shadow. Perfect for a service of summer fruits, or as a shallow basin for an arrangement of summer flowers. It is just less than 16 inches (40 cm) diameter and in excellent condition. Asuka, originally of Osaka, learned under the careful tutelage of Tomimoto Kenkichi in Kyoto, the city she has called home for several decades. She is well known in the Japanese ceramic world for her unique sculpture.

A charred Tsubo blasted with ash by Takahashi Rakusai enclosed in the original signed wooden box. It reflects the style of early Shigaraki, with an engraved crosshatch belt circling the flaring mouth. The piece is 8 inches (21 cm) tall, roughly the same diameter and in excellent condition but for one tiny nick in the base.
Born in Shigaraki in 1900, Rakusai was considered one of the true masters of Shigaraki and Iga-yaki, along with Naokata and later Michio. He worked toward the revival of Kamakura and Muromachi wares like this piece, and came to the world stage when he won international acclaim after being prized at the 1958 Brussels Exposition. He was later named a Shiga-ken Juyo Mukei Bunkazai and is credited as one of the artists that saved Japanese pottery from extinction in the post-war years. He eschewed the National Competitions and was a proponent of the world of private exhibition. He died in 1976.