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Enquiries welcomed for these
and other works not featured on this
website - condition reports and more
images - available on request.
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Snow
Maiden

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enlarge
Snow Maiden early 1900s
Signature: Mitsukaze
(Kōfū)
This image evokes the Japanese
folk tale Tsuru no ongaishi (‘Crane's Gratitude’)about a
crane which was rescued by an old man and later repaid his
kindness. According to the story the man found a crane caught in a
trap and freed it. Later a girl appeared at the man’s home saying
that she was a traveler who was lost and in need of shelter. The
man and his wife took her into their home and soon warmed to her.
She remained in their home helping them and over time became part
of the family eventually being adopted as their daughter. Whilst
there she asked for a loom and began weaving yarn into beautiful
brocade that the man was able to sell to a local daimyo
(lord). This enabled the family to support themselves but the girl
refused to allow the couple to see her weaving. However, the girl
became progressively pale and weak and concerned that she may be
overworking herself; the man peeked in when she is at the loom. To
his surprise he saw the crane he had rescued plucking its feathers
with which to weave brocade. Having broken the spell by seeing her
true form the girl flew away in the form of
crane.
This subject provided a fitting
excuse to show both a beautiful woman and suggest literary
associations and as such was depicted by ukiyo-e artists
such as Yoshitoshi Tsukioka (1839-92) in his 1865 New Forms of
Thirty-six Ghostsand by contemporary artists such as Tsunetomi
Kitano (1880-1947)from the Shin-hanga art movement. These images
all share the common features of a beauty standing in falling snow
and dressed in white, red and black, the colours of a heron. The
contrast between pure white and small accents of red is a
particularly attractive feature of these works and in this painting
this element is further accentuated by the use of gofun, a
particularly vibrant white made from crushed sea shells that gives
a textured surface suggestive of snow flakes or snow settled on
branches.
quality ivory finial signature
More images and full
condition report - available on
request
Kamigata-e
Kabuki theatre
posters
KJP1
KJP2
Rare examples of
painted Kabuki theatre signboards - e-kanban- colour
pigment on paper with silk top and bottom borders. Framed - ( can
be sold un-framed for shipping) painting size
166
cm x 93 cm. Attributed
to the Torii family* :
Kamigata-e essay
by
Dr Gary Hickey, Melbourne University 2008
* "the
heavy lines that delineate full rounded figures are a ubique
characteristic of the Torii family of painters who were responsible
for this particular type of picture signboard"
Reference:
A-31 Catalogue: The Waseda University Theatre Museum
Collection Kabuki Exhibition : The Japan Foundation Australia 1976
More
images and full condition report - available on
request
Koi - carp
scroll
Koi (Carp)
possibly nineteenth century
ink and
colour on silk click
on small image for enlarged detail
The carp is a
favoured subject in Japanese art appearing in paintings and as a
motif in decorative art objects. The fish is said to have first
been brought to Asia by Genghis Khan and subsequently arrived in
Japan via China. First used as a food source for farmers they were,
from the early sixteenth century used for ornamentation in garden
ponds. This led to selective breeding with a bright red fish adding
variety to the standard black or grey.
In both China
and Japan koi are seen as representative of masculine
strength and perseverance and as such are usually depicted in art
works swimming up a waterfall (koinobori). This depiction is
further symbolised in Japanese streamers in the shape of a
koi ‘swimming’ through the air as a symbol of the
determination needed to traverse life’s difficulties. It is in this
form that, in Japan, they are flown from tall poles on Boys Day
Festival on the 5th May. This particular form of the
carp was a favourite of Japanese painting.
None of this
overt symbolism is apparent in this painting of a koi
although when viewing this work the Japanese would have been well
aware of its associated meanings. As such the work would have been
most probably hung in the alcove of the Japanese home on Boys Day.
The S-shape of the fish animates its form whilst the care taken in
detailing its scales contributes to its decorative
appeal.
More images and full
condition report - available on
request
Early Spring
scroll
details up soon 12//8/2008
signed: Nagasawa Rosetho c.Late
C19th
Daruma
scroll
C18th artist Unkoku Toeki -
details up soon
Tiger
Tiger
ink and
colour on paper (Possibly Kanō School)
Despite the
tiger (tora) not being native to Japan it has become a
popular subject of Japanese art. It was particularly respected by
the samurai for its strength, nobleness and courage characteristics
that were part of its association with Buddhism. According to
legend the tiger is said to have leaped from the stars and as such
is closely associated with wind with its roar being a manifestation
of thunder. Under Taoist belief the tiger is a fearful, predatory
creature associated with hunger and the termination of life. This
later characteristic resulted in the tiger being associated with
autumn. This tiger, depicted menacingly with its head lowered and
its tail raised, seems to be in this latter predatory
mode.
Along with
the dragon the tiger was a favourite subject of the Kanō School of
painting. The bold outlines are indicative of this school but the
creative use of the painterly technique of tarashikomi used
here to suggest the tiger’s fur is reminiscent of Kyoto Rimpa
painting. Tarashikomi was a technique in which black
sumi ink would be added to damp areas of paper so that the
ink pooled creating soft blurred edges. There may also be an
influence from the mainland for the compacted head and bulging eyes
of this tiger are reminiscent of Korean folk
paintings.
Scenes from Chushingura
or the Tale of the 47
Ronin:
one of the greatest tales
from Japanese history
framed - 136
cm high x 154 cm - detailed images on request
Chushingara read this
essay by Dr Gary Hickey, Melbourne University
Late C19th Meiji period,
these paintings on silk are unusually large, executed in the manner
of an Edo woodblock print - ink and pigment on silk -
unsigned.
The powerful play with
perspective enhances the drama of the subject matter and much is
made of the action both within and outside the frame. Perspective
came relatively late to Japanese art and it has been used here to
great effect.

90cm high x 156 cm

Photos taken after
framing - others available on request each 90 cm high x
90 cm
Maiko
Maiko - young apprentice Geishas of Kyoto
signed Senkyo
Dimensions: 214
h x 122cm w
Kanu &
Chohi
Kanu and
Chohi - famous Chinese generals -
framed (shown unframed)
pigment and ink on paper
Late Edo period C1860
Kanu & Chohi
read this
essay by Dr Gary Hickey, Melbourne Universi
Rinpa (Rimpa)
school painting - classic paintings
of flowers in a landscape
Late Edo period
C.1830
pigment in paper with gold
leaf - framed 124 x 68cm
Chinese literati
style series of paintings
(Japanese) originally mounted on
2 x 6 panel screens - Chinese subject matter Chinese
literati style Chinese Sages C19th with strong
graphic qualities
Series of 8 - can be
purchased individually

Top:
Tiger drinking by a stream
ink and pigment on paper -
framed 162 cm x 78cm
Bottom:
Tiger in bamboo grove
Signed: Yuhi
Kumashiro, 1770
ink and pigment on paper -
framed 162 x 78cm
Buddhist
Iconography

New images up August 13th 2008 - details up
soon
Buddhist Iconography
C16th
RC6
Muromachi period Buddhist
scroll C16th
mounted on brocade with
incised and gilded scroll mounts
New images up August 13th 2008 - details up
soon
Bijin
& Koi
SOLD
Bijin (a beautiful woman)
with a koi (carp), reading a
hand scroll
mounted as a scroll with a
silk brocade mount C1830
Beauty & Carp
read this
essay by Dr Gary Hickey, Melbourne University
Japanese
6 panel screens
Japanese 2
panel screens
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