Product Description

7512           A red dry lacquer suiban entitled ‘Sandy Seashore’. The exterior is in red with ridged sides and black rims, the interior is in blue.

Seal: Tessai

Japan 20^th century Shōwa period

Dimensions: H. 2¾” x W. 21″ x D. 11¼” (6.5cm x 53cm x 28cm)

Tomobako (original box) inscribed:

Lid: Kanshitsu suiban. Suhama (dry lacquer suiban. Sandy Seashore)

Lid interior: Kōshitsuan

Seal: Nakagawa Tessai

Nakagawa Tessai (1897-1976) was also known as Nakagawa Tetsuya and was born in Yamagata Prefecture. He studied lacquer in Kyoto under the 10^th generation lacquer master Nakamura Sōtetsu (1862-1926) and later in Tokyo under Uematsu Kaneyoshi (1872-1933) and Rokkaku Shishui (1867-1950).

Tessai exhibited his work regularly at the Japanese Government Fine Art Exhibitions of Teiten, Bunten, Shin-Bunten and Nitten from 1927 until 1956. His work was also included in the prestigious 1^st Japan Art Festival which took place in New York in 1966 and featured the work of other prominent contemporary Japanese artists of the time. The lacquer ware was presented alongside avant-garde paintings by import painters such as Hisao Domoto (1928-2013), Tatsuo Yamaguchi (1902-1983), Kumi Sugai (1919-1996) and Kodo Otomaru (1898-1997).

Works by this artist can be found in the collection of: National Museum of Modern Art Tokyo

Suiban are trays used for bonseki, the practice of creating miniature landscapes from sand and rocks. These scholarly creations are usually displayed in the tokonoma, the formal display area within a traditional Japanese house.