Hayakawa Shōkosai III 三代 早川尚古斎 (1864-1922)
Open Work Free-style Bamboo Basket
| Inv. Nr. | #21.025 |
| Date | Late Meiji period, dated: Spring 1912 |
| Material | Bamboo, dyed with plum extract |
| Dimensions | H 42,6 x Diam. circa 26,0 cm |
Comes with fitted, signed and sealed wooden box.
Price on request
An impressive large open-work freestyle bamboo basket made by Hayakawa Shōkosai III. The Hayakawa family is considered the founding fathers of modern bamboo art in Japan, as Hayakawa Shōkosai I (1815-1897) is said to have been the first to sign his works in 1856. His fifth son, Shōkosai III, took over the family business after the early death of his elder brother, Shōkosai II, in 1905. Experts agree that he may have played the most important role in "expanding the expressive possibilities of bamboo, departing much further from Chinese models than his father." (Earle 2018, 17) With his flexible, organic style, he exerted an immense influence on later bamboo art.
Two similar baskets have been published in Joe Earle: Baskets. Masterpieces of Japanese Bamboo Art 1850-2015, John Adamson Dist A/C (2018), pp. 88-91.
Signed underneath: Sansei Shōkosai tsukuru ("Made by Shōkosai III") and dated inside the lid of the box: Mizunoene chūshun ("2nd month [of the lunar calendar], 1912").