Akiyama Komajiro 秋山駒次郎
gold dish with paneled figures and flowers
size； diameter about 17.9 cm height about 2.3cm
condition: no scratches, no cracks and no repairs
This 6-sun dish is finished with transcendence, for example, painting by mori-kin and shiro-mori (see below), and the technique of miniature paintings.
The figure of people who seem to be men and women of the Edo period are drawn in two different panels, and in another panel, flowers drawn by a different style (like Shounku-do style). It is painted in detail and decorated with gold, brocade, mori-kin and shiro-mori (see below), so the medium dish has delicate pictures drawn like the large plate and large vase of Meiji kutani.
The paintings seem be illustration in the story that flourished during the Meiji period. In the square-shaped panel the paintings of a samurai who has something in his hand, facing another samurai, and many samurais (either servants) who watch over two samurais are is finely carefully drawn.
On the other hand, another panel shows the women boarding on a boat, looking back at Mt. Fuji and returning to a pier, and the appearance of the pier. They are full of rich expressions.
The two panels with samurai kimono in gold, fine stone-wall of castle like continuous turtle shells, thatched roof shining in mori-kin, pine tree and willow branches in mori-kin and so on are drawn finely.
The technique of mori-kin, which shows the high level of technology at that time, is being used everywhere.
Mori-kin is a technique that was started by Shimizu Bizan in 1882. It is completed through a process of painting patterns on the base body, baking it, repeating them several times, then forming each pattern, and painting hon-kin (*) over the patterns with convex.
A high level of technical skill was required for this technique. The mori-kin is found on pine tree branches, thatched roofs, and patterns around black panel.
(*) hon-kin is a type of paint that has a high content of gold among gold-baked paints. Baking temperature is 700-850 degrees. It is thicker than cheap mizu-kin (gold dissolved in a solvent), so it was used for permanent decoration.
Another is that the technique of shiro-mori (which sometimes refers to the white “color paint” itself) is used to express the convex of the white paint.
In 1893 Tomoda Yasukiyo developed the white pigment “shiro-mori” and the technique of shiro-mori. So, the delicate convex is formed to express subtle color contrasts between the white body or the surroundings. After that, various “paints for convex” were developed, and it became possible to express subtle colors.
In this work, shiro-mori is used for the whiteness such as swelling of sails and the backside of fern (it means congratulations for longevity and prosperity of the family). They have a good contrast by shiro-mori.
This dish has no paintings in the back side. It seems that it was common in the middle plate (dish), compared to big plate that was gorgeous or decorated. It is thought that the creator could concentrate on carefully painting the surface.
The back name “kutani / made by Akiyama” is written inside the foot of this work. We can see also “Akiyama-do” and “Akiyama Komajiro Shoten (store)”. (see below)
About creator Akiyama Komajiro 秋山駒次郎
Akiyama Komajiro born in1863, dead year is unknown
Akiyama Komajiro was born as the second son of a samurai of the Kaga domain. He entered the Ishikawa Research Institute in 1863, studied porcelain painting with Suda Seika and graduated in 1880. Furthermore, after he learned painting, he worked at Fujioka Iwahana-do, a famous kiln in Kanazawa at that time.
In 1883, he entered the Shoun-do managed by Matsumoto Sahei, and in 1908, he worked as a foreman until the Shohei-do closed. In 1888, he became the son-in-law of Sahei’s brother-in-law Akiyama Heisaku, and changed his family name to Akiyama.
When Shounko-do was succeeded by Matsumoto Sakichi, who was adopted by Matsumot Sahei, Akiyama became a factory manager of porcelain painting.
It is considered that he produced excellent works with his own back names. Perhaps his experience of the factory manager was put to good use in his works, which have the back name “Made by Akiyama,” “Akiyama-do,” “Akiyama Komojiro Shoten (store)”.
|date of exhibition||May 16, 2020|
|sell & buy||under consideration|