Detail View: The AMICA Library: Bowl with Reticulated Rim

ASIA.1979.252

1998

Decorative Arts and Utilitarian Objects

Kenzan, Ogata

Asian; Far East Asian; Japanese

1663-1743

Ogata Kenzan

Bowl with Reticulated Rim

Bottom view

Edo period, early 18th century

1700

1733

Stoneware with pierced design and painted with slips under glaze, overglaze enamels, and gold (Kyoto ware)

Ceramics

Japan, Kyoto Prefecture

H. 4 7/8 in. (11 cm); D. 7 1/2 in. (19.1 cm)

Asia Society

New York, New York, USA

1979.252

Asia Society: The Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection

http://www.asiasociety.org

A ceramic industry developed in and around Kyoto in the 16th century, and the stonewares produced there for the domestic market differ in shape and style of decoration from the better-known contemporaneous porcelains from Arita made primarily for export.Both Kyoto wares and Arita porcelains are often painted with overglaze enamel pigments. This technique appeared in both places around 1640, and its use continues to be a hallmark of the Kyoto pottery tradition. Unlike the anonymous artisans who made Arita porcelains, however, many of the potters working in Kyoto, such as Nonomura Ninsei and Ogata Kenzan, played important roles in the culture of that city and were renowned as artists during and after their lifetimes.

The ceramics of Ogata Kenzan (1663-1743) are as famous and highly regarded as those of his mentor, Nonomura Ninsei (c. 1574-1660/66). Kenzan was the younger brother of the famous painter Ogata Korin (1658-1716). Born into a prosperous family of clothiers who catered to the Kyoto aristocracy, and educated in many disciplines, Kenzan spent his youth at the artistic colony of Takagamine, which had been established by the potter and calligrapher Hon'ami Koetsu (1558-1637). At Takagamine, he studied pottery with Koetsu's grandson Koho (1601-1682) and with Ichinyu (1640-1696), head of the fourth generation of Raku potters. In 1688 Kenzan established his first kiln at his home in Omuro Village to the south of Ninnaji and Ninsei's kiln. Kenzan's close friendship with Ninsei is reflected in the factthat in 1699, Seiemon, Ninsei's son, gave Kenzan his father's private technical manual (densho) on the art of pottery. In the same year, Kenzan built a kiln at Narutaki, a few miles northwest of Omuro. He began to use the name Kenzan ('northwest mountain') when he opened this kiln. Kenzan's work at Narutaki was characterized by his close collaboration with his brother Korin, who painted the designs on several sets of dishes, some of the most innovative ceramics in Japanese history. Projects of this sort seem to have ended when in 1712 Kenzan once again moved his kiln (probably for financial reasons) to Nijo Chojiyamachi, a commercial ceramic district in metropolitan Kyoto. Kenzan left Kyoto in 1731; he continued to make ceramics in Edo until his death in 1743.

The style of the signature on the base of this bowl by Kenzan indicates that it was made around 1712, probably at the Chojiyamachi kiln. The deep shape and pierced openwork, a Kenzan innovation, are seen in several bowls produced at this time. Here, the shape of the bowl has been incorporated into a design of bamboo growing along the misty banks of a river found on both the exterior and interior of the piece. The bamboo and river banks are painted in overglaze green and black, respectively, against a background of white and tan slips that cover the entire surface. Wild geese painted abstractly in gold pigment fly above. Images of transition, geese are traditional symbols of both spring and autumn in East Asian art and literature.

Asia Society. Handbook of the Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection. New York: Asia Society, [1981], p. 109.

Takeuchi, Junichi. Masterpieces of Japanese Art. Tokyo: Shogakukan, 1994, vol. 27.

Treasures of Asian Art: Selections from the Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection, The Asia Society, New York. Hong Kong and Singapore: Hong Kong Museum of Art and National Museum Singapore, 1993, pp. 178, 179.

Treasures of Asian Art: Selections from the Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection, The Asia Society, New York. Tokyo: Idemitsu Museum of Arts, 1992, pp. 97, 141.

Wilson, Richard L., and Ogasawara Saeko. Ogata Kenzan: His Life and Complete Works. Tokyo: Yuzankaku, 1992, vol. 1, p. 42, pl. 55.

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