Fine Japanese Art
Fine Japanese Art
Auction Closed
November 3, 04:10 PM GMT
Estimate
3,000 - 5,000 GBP
Lot Details
Description
YAGI KAZUO (1918-1979)
SHOWA PERIOD, 20TH CENTURY
the flattened oval vase on everted foot, short neck with everted rim, decorated in grey and cream glaze on an earthenware body, with impressed inscription mon enfant ma soeur songe a la douceur (from Charles Beaudelaire's poem "L'Invitation au voyage" in his anthology Les Fleurs du mal), with a seal on the reverse, with fitted box, signed Kazuo saku and sealed Kazuo
26.5 cm, 10 1/2 in.
Born in Kyoto, Yagi Kazuo (1918-1917) was one of the founders of the post-war Japanese abstract art group Sodeisha (Crawling through Mud Association) and a great proponent of clay sculpture, following his studies at the Kyoto Municipal School of Arts and Crafts and the Kyoto Ceramic Research Institute. Inspired by the French Surrealists, the group repurposed everyday ceramics, creating “objet-yaki” (ceramic art object) and playing with the concept of traditional form and function, breaking away from the traditional craft form. During his career Yagi exhibited in Japan, Europe and the US, and his works are held in important international institutions, including The Victoria and Albert Museum, London, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York and The Museum of Modern Art, New York.
Yanagi was inspired by the ceramic ware of Pablo Picasso, and the present lot with its inscription attests to an interest in the poetry of Charles Baudelaire, whose values were admired by the Surrealists. The piece was made from local Shigaraki clay, its orange hue the result of being fired in a wood-burning kiln.
Born in Kyoto, Yagi Kazuo (1918-1917) was one of the founders of the post-war Japanese abstract art group Sodeisha (Crawling through Mud Association) and a great proponent of clay sculpture, following his studies at the Kyoto Municipal School of Arts and Crafts and the Kyoto Ceramic Research Institute. Inspired by the French Surrealists, the group repurposed everyday ceramics, creating “objets”, and playing with the concept of traditional form and function. During his career Yagi exhibited in Japan, Europe and the US, and his works are held in important international institutions, including The Victoria and Albert Museum, London, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York and The Museum of Modern Art, New York.
Yanagi was inspired by the ceramic ware of Pablo Picasso, and the present lot with its inscription attests to an interest in the poetry of Charles Baudelaire, whose values were admired by the Surrealists. The piece was made from local Shigaraki clay, its orange hue the result of being fired in a wood-burning kiln, and was decorated in an ash glaze.
