Hiraishi Kōshō
Box for Writing Utensils with Plum Tree Design, 1940s
Maki-e gold and silver lacquer on wood
Size 2 x 9¾ x 11 in. (5.1 x 25 x 28.2 cm)
T-5116
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Writng box of rectangular form with curved corners and kabusebuta (overhanging lid), the interior fitted with a fudekake (frame with brush rests to each side) and a raised central section...
Writng box of rectangular form with curved corners and kabusebuta (overhanging lid), the interior fitted with a fudekake (frame with brush rests to each side) and a raised central section with recesses for a suzuri (ink-grinding stone) and a gilt-copper suiteki (water dropper) in the form of three maple leaves, the exterior of the lid with a black-lacquer ground lavishly sprinkled with hirame and nashiji gold and silver flakes and decorated predominantly in gold and silver raised takamaki-e with a depiction of the trunk and branches of an ancient plum tree, its numerous blossoms in bud and flower, the interior and base finished in rich gold hirame flakes
Signed on the base in gold hiramaki-e characters Kōshō saku (Made by Kōshō)
Comes with the original paulownia-wood tomobako storage box inscribed outside Ume no zu suzuribako (Box for Writing Utensils with Plum Design ) and signed inside Kōshō saku (Made by Kōshō) with a seal Kōshō
Lending a modern twist to a time-honored lacquer motif, maki-e artist Hiraishi Takashi presents us with a partial view of an ancient plum tree, viewed in close-up and strikingly cropped in typical mid-century manner, with blossoms and buds exaggerated in scale relative to the trunk. The stylized composition draws on the bold experimentation of lacquer artists in the Rinpa tradition, notably Hon’ami Kōetsu (1558-1637) and Ogata Kōrin (1658-1716). However, the outlines of the trunk and branches are rendered with a more painterly sensibility, reflecting the influence of contemporary pictorial art in other media.
A pupil of Okumura Kajō (1893-1937), a leading figure in Kyoto’s lacquer art world, Hiraishi Takashi—who adopted the art name Kōshō around 1940—participated in the Teiten official national exhibition and its successor events, including the 1940 special exhibition commemorating the 2,600th anniversary of the Japanese Imperial House. After World War II, he continued to exhibit nationally at the government-sponsored Nitten until 1957 and later at the reformed independent Nitten, primarily submitting panels with abstract designs (in stark contrast to this writing box).
Hiraishi also taught lacquer art at the Kyoto Municipal Craft School. In 1982, he was honored as a Person of Cultural Merit by the City of Kyoto. Postwar works by Hiraishi Kōshō are held in the collections of the Kyoto City Museum of Art and the National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto.
Signed on the base in gold hiramaki-e characters Kōshō saku (Made by Kōshō)
Comes with the original paulownia-wood tomobako storage box inscribed outside Ume no zu suzuribako (Box for Writing Utensils with Plum Design ) and signed inside Kōshō saku (Made by Kōshō) with a seal Kōshō
Lending a modern twist to a time-honored lacquer motif, maki-e artist Hiraishi Takashi presents us with a partial view of an ancient plum tree, viewed in close-up and strikingly cropped in typical mid-century manner, with blossoms and buds exaggerated in scale relative to the trunk. The stylized composition draws on the bold experimentation of lacquer artists in the Rinpa tradition, notably Hon’ami Kōetsu (1558-1637) and Ogata Kōrin (1658-1716). However, the outlines of the trunk and branches are rendered with a more painterly sensibility, reflecting the influence of contemporary pictorial art in other media.
A pupil of Okumura Kajō (1893-1937), a leading figure in Kyoto’s lacquer art world, Hiraishi Takashi—who adopted the art name Kōshō around 1940—participated in the Teiten official national exhibition and its successor events, including the 1940 special exhibition commemorating the 2,600th anniversary of the Japanese Imperial House. After World War II, he continued to exhibit nationally at the government-sponsored Nitten until 1957 and later at the reformed independent Nitten, primarily submitting panels with abstract designs (in stark contrast to this writing box).
Hiraishi also taught lacquer art at the Kyoto Municipal Craft School. In 1982, he was honored as a Person of Cultural Merit by the City of Kyoto. Postwar works by Hiraishi Kōshō are held in the collections of the Kyoto City Museum of Art and the National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto.