 Plate
(Japan, 1660-1670)
Old Kutani ware, porcelain
with overglaze enamels
Height: 2 3/8 in. (6 cm)
Diameter: 13 1/2 in. (34.3 cm)
Gift
of the Art Museum Council, AC1992.110.1
This magnificent piece of Old Kutani
ware has a powerful overall design of teal chrysanthemum flowers
and purple stems against a stippled yellow ground on which plum
blossoms float freely. This reflects the palette commonly used
in Old Kutani wares: teal blue, green, yellow, aubergine, and
touches of red. The artist has intentionally left one of the
flowers in the yellow background color, demonstrating his
inventiveness and playful freedom from convention. This bold
design, emblematic of Japanese style, can be closely related to
the richly decorated painted screens and flamboyant kosode (short-sleeved)
robes of the mid-seventeenth century. It is a superb example of
the Japanese genius for taking an aesthetic model from another
culture-in this case porcelain with over-glaze techniques
developed originally in China-and transforming it into
something uniquely Japanese in spirit.
Related Topic:
|
