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79. Takeuchi Seihô (1864-1942) & Rokubei V, Kiyomizu (1875-1959)
Nihonga Kyoyaki
Kashibachi, Sasa hotaru - Bowl for sweets, Grass and firefly
Signed: Seihô with kaô
Seals: Kiyo
Technique: brown glazed Kyôyaki with an overglaze painting in gold, black and red Ø 21,4 x 10
Date: c.1918-20
Condition: Stress crack (baking flaw), otherwise good

Seihô was one of the last very important and famous Maruyama-Shijô style painters.
He was an extremely skilful painter, which earned him fame and a lot of pupils. He entered Bairei's studio at the age of 16 and already in the following year he won his first prize at an exhibition, which is a rare for such a young artist.
He eagerly studied all different styles. In 1900 he went to Europe for six months to get acquainted with western painting. On his return he changed the first character "Sei" of his name into a character meaning "West". His two trips to China in 1920 and 1921 meant another enrichment to his painting. His flexibility in styles and the flamboyantly virtuoso way he handled his brush meant in the eyes of some critics that his craftsmanship reduced his artistic abilities.

Reference:
Next to a number of monographs and any in general book on modern Japanese painting:
Harada 1981
Berry & Morioka ‘99 pp. 130-137
Conant pp. 322-323
Roberts p. 171
Araki p. 1633

Rokubei V (Shôrei) (1875-1959) was the second son of Kiyomizu Rokubei IV.
Rokubei V studied Shijô painting with Kôno Bairei (1844-1895). His artist name Go: Shôrei. Kikuchi Hôbun (1862-1918), Taniguchi Kôkyô (1864-1915), Takeuchi Seihô (1864-1942) and Tsuji Kakô (1870-1931) were his classmates. He also studied at the Kyoto Prefectural School of Painting, and studied ceramic techniques with his father after graduation. His career as a ceramic artist began when he won a prize at the Fourth Domestic Industrial Exposition in 1895. He studied glazing techniques at the Kyoto Municipal Ceramic Laboratory established in 1896 and organized the Promoting Society for Craft Workers (Shokkô Shôrei-kai) with designer Kikuchi Sokû at the Laboratory in 1899. He actively worked on the study and research of new glazing techniques and (Western) designs. When Rokubei IV retired, he inherited the title and became Rokubei V in 1913. He exhibited at the Nôten, the Design and Applied Artworks Exhibition sponsored by the Ministry of Agriculture and Commerce and the Teiten, the Imperial Art Academy Exhibition. He also became a member of the Imperial Art Academy and played an important role as a leading figure of the craft world. In 1945 he retired and took the artist’s name Rokuwa.

Reference:
Kyoto ‘03, ’Sekka’ p. 326 ff.

Price: EUR 1,500 / USD 1,635