Kiyomizu Rokubei V 五代 清水六兵衛 (1875-1959) · Yamada Kaidō 山田介堂 (1870-1924)

When it comes to Japanese ceramics, Rokubei is perhaps one of the most famous names within the Kyōto ceramic sphere. With over 240 years of history and currently in its eighth generation, the family has been the most influential in the development and survival of Kyō ware. One of the secrets of their success may lie in their continued active participation in Kyōto art circles. All Rokubei potters were friends with some of the most important artists of their time.

Kiyomizu Rokubei V, born in 1875, studied painting with the Shijō master Konō Bairei (1844-1895) and later with Takeuchi Seihō (1864-1942). As a potter, he was apprenticed to his father, Rokubei IV (1848-1920), who is famous for his subtle collaborative works with Tomioka Tessai (1837-1924) and Kamisaka Sekka (1866-1942), as seen in a 1910 bowl with orchid and mushrooms by Rokubei IV and Tessai in the National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian (F2020.4.1a-g). Rokubei V successfully continued these collaborations and moved into the next generation. The bowl presented here was painted and inscribed by Tessai's talented pupil, Yamada Kaidō.

Kaidō, born in 1870 as Tomosaburō in Fukui Prefecture, was an influential figure in his own right. Together with Tajika Chikuson (1864-1922) and Ikeda Keisen (1863-1931) he was involved in the foundation of the Japan Literati Painting Institute (Nihon Nanga-in) and is known as one of the three famous painters from Fukui, the so-called "Three Dōs" (Fukui Sandō).

This bowl, used to serve sweets in the seventeenth-century Chinese-inspired tradition of brewing steeped tea, was named "Furō chōshun", which can be literally translated as "Never Aging, Eternal Spring". The name refers to the two plants depicted on the bowl: the pine tree, a symbol of longevity, and the white rose, known in Japan for its endless bloom throughout the year, a symbol of devotion and enduring beauty. In Ikebana, the Japanese art of flower arranging, this unique combination of pine and white roses is used for New Year's ceremonies and to welcome spring.

In his inscription, Kaidō also describes a late afternoon on such a clear spring day when he painted the bowl in his studio under pine trees: "On a spring day in 1919, in my hut, sheltered by pines under colored clouds."

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