Japanese Fine Art
Welcome to our website for Japanese art. We would like to invite you to discover our collection of fine antique works of art, ranging from screen paintings and hanging scroll to traditional ceramics, elegant lacquer works, exceptional sculptures and intricately woven bamboo flower baskets. All of our objects are unique masterpieces carefully selected by the gallerist and art historian Dr. Fabian Alexander Kommoss for their historical significance and outstanding quality. Galerie Kommoss is a leading gallery for fine Japanese art in Europe.
Why Japanese Art?
Refined elegance and astonishing craftsmanship on one side, and rough, coarse-looking ceramics that seem to have been created by nature itself on the other, the wide spectrum of Japanese art is fascinating and never monotonous. In fact, the opposite is true: Whether you look at the more popular and immediately appealing images of a Hokusai, the serene beauty of Japanese Buddhist sculpture, or the often complex aesthetic programs of traditional tea culture, the deeper you delve into the complex images, often subtly imbued with metaphorical meaning or humor, the more exciting it gets. What makes Japanese art so attractive to us is its pervasive characteristic of understanding the natural world as a source of spiritual insight and an instructive mirror of human emotion.
Fujiwara Yū: Legacy of a National Treasure
We are pleased to present a selection of outstanding ceramic works by Fujiwara Yū (1932–2001), one of the most important Japanese potters of the 20th century and a designated Living National Treasure for Bizen ware. As the son of Fujiwara Kei, he played a central role in the revival of Bizen ceramics after the Second World War. Rooted in the aesthetics of the Momoyama period, his work is known for its powerful presence, minimalist form, and nuanced firing effects. At the heart of this exhibition stands a rare and powerful Bizen fresh water jar, praised and certified by tea master Hisada Sōya XII of the Omotesenke tea tradition — a true master piece within Fujiwara’s oeuvre.
Object of the Month
We are pleased to present this beautiful fan-shaped painting by Ōtagaki Rengetsu. The work depicts a sencha teapot of the type Rengetsu usually made herself. The pot is fluidly painted in a few thin lines with a very light, soft pink color and accentuated with two broader, light gray brushstrokes on the shoulder and lid of the pot to give the vessel a more three-dimensional look. On the left side of the painting, Rengetsu added one of her poems, which perfectly accompanies the painted pot:
Scooped up, it is loved by all, the water of the Uji River, infused with the scent of mountain roses.
In her poem, Rengetsu plays with several synesthetic impressions. First, she gives the viewer the idea that the tea brewed in the pot is made with water brought from the Uji River in Kyōto, a famous scenic spot also known from the Tale of Genji. She then combines this impression with the scent of mountain roses (Jap. yamabuki), which grow in the mountains near the river and are enjoyed by young and old in the spring, when their blossoms turn nature bright yellow. Finally, she combines the written word with the image by using the first syllable of the poem, "く" (ku), with its wavy form in its pictorial qualities, just like a stream of steam rising from the spout of a teapot, spreading its fragrant scent - whether that of tea or that of blooming mountain roses.
