These three pieces are the largest examples
of Cloisonne enamel ever made. The vases are
eight feet eight inches high. Work upon them
was begun in 1890 and finished in January, 1893.
They were designed especially for exhibition at the
World's Columbian Exposition, and upon their
completion were viewed by the Empress of Japan.
The designs on the vases were the idea of Mr. Shin
Shiwoda, Special Counsellor for Arts of the Japanese
Commission to the World's Columbian Exposition.
Their manufacture was undertaken by Mr. Shirozaemon
Suzuki, of Yokohama, with the co-operation of Mr.
Seizaemon Tsunekawa, at Nagoya. The original
design was painted by Mr. Kanpo Araki, of Tokyo, and
the black ink sketch on the copper was made by
Kiosai Oda, of Nagoya. The men directly in
charge of making the vases were Gisaburo Tsukamoto
and Kihyoe Hayashi, of Toshima. The design
for the wood carving was made by Setsuko Nishiyama,
of Nagoya, and the carving was done by Kinzaburo
Yeguchi, of Nagoya. The bronze American eagle
was made by Yukimune Sugiura, of Tokyo. The
general design represents the seasons of the year:
the group of chickens typifying spring; the dragon,
summer, and the two eagles, autumn; while on the
reverse, with two red eagles, a winter scene is
portrayed. The same design also symbolizes
three virtues - wisdom, honesty and strength,
symbolized respectively, by the dragon, chickens and
eagles.
Another idea conveyed by the front design is, that
the dragon typifies China; the two eagels, Russia:
the group of chickens, the Corean Islands, and the
rising sun, the Empire of Japan; while the bronze
eagle on the cover of the censor is the American
eagle.
The silver stars inlaid on the horizontal red and
white stripes on the top of the vases and censor are
emblematic of the American stars and stripes, while
the chrsanthemums and other Imperial floral emblems
strewn on the stripes symbolize the close friendship
between Japan and the United States. The
handles of the vases are shaped after chrysanthemum
leaves - the chrysanthemum being the Imperial crest
of Japan.
The blooming cherry tree on the censor is symbolic
also of spring. The full moon with the flight
of birds, on one of the vases, symbolize summer and
autumn. The lower portion of each vase shows
bouquets of grasses of flowers native to Japan.
The pedastals on which the vases rest are made from
keyaki, a hardwood tree grown in Japan, the wood of
which is prized for its fine grain and durability.
The pieces from which the pedestals are formed are
two hundred years old, having been taken from a
temple recently destroyed by an earthquake.
The panels in the pedestals are carved from this
wood and show seventy different specimens of
flowers. |
This art
of the cloisonne- enamel has been so much
practiced in Japan, has attained such a
wonderful degree of perfection in that
country, and has become such a specialty with
Japanese people, that when we hear of
cloisonne now we all take it to mean Japanese
cloisonne exclusively. Among the wonderful
specimens exhibited by Japan at the Columbia
Exposition we must mention first of all those
colossal jars in the art gallery, made
expressly for this exposition, which are the
largest ever made in this ware; they stand
over 8 feet high. They are very fire
specimens, although the enameling is not
quite so perfect as in the smaller pieces. In
the grinding some of the enamel has come out.
Still, they are very magnificent, and are
exhibited by Shiwoda (possibly Shin), of Tokyo. There are
four other pairs of very large vases in the
manufactures building, all on red grounds.
One pair on the red ground shows the white
hawthorn pattern, which is very happily
softened and harmonized by the introduction
of doves, of tender "dove" colors, sitting
among the branches. These and another pair
are from S. Goto (Seizaburo), of Yokohama. The two
remaining jars have the finest red as ground,
and are from Shirozaemon Suzuki, of Nagoya.
Another jar, cold and somber in coloring,
suited to the stormy subject, is grounded
with darkest blue, the design being branches
of apple blossoms blown by the wind, also
from Shirozaemon Suzuki.
This extremely laborious process
yet leaves great scope for the exercise of
the inventive faculty of the individual
artist. Varieties in color and subject are
unending, no two pieces being exactly alike.
There are over 8,000 pieces in this section.
There are two new departures in style
that are very remarkable, in the Central
Association's exhibit. They are both by the
same maker, Sosuke Namikawa, of Tokyo. One
may be described as the most refined
treatment of the realistic that has ever been
attempted in cloisonne. It represents a bowl
filled with deep blue water, the color of a
lake where it reflects the sky. About the rim
(the surface of the lake) you see an
occasional trail of lily leaves with its
exquisite white flower—just a touch, no more.
Deep in the water, or just curving out from
under the lily leaves, are gray
velvety-coated fish, with here and there a
sparkle and flash of tiny gold fish. It is
impossible to describe the perfection of this
piece. The wonderful harmonizing of the blue
water, green weed, and gray and gold fish is
not more wonderful than the extraordinary
effect of distance and intervening element
given to some of them, the delicious "line"
of their movement, and, finally, the great
art with which the "wiring" has been
used—nearly lost in some places and in others
made to serve as outline; for instance, in
the scales of the nearest fish. A more
lifelike rendering of the surface could not
be given. It must be seen through a
magnifying glass to be appreciated. An
indescribable softness and harmony—a tone, as
it is called in painting—pervades this lovely
work. You seem to lose the idea of its being
anything but what it represents, and you sink
with the fish into the twilight of the cool
blue depths.
The second piece, by the
same maker, is also a triumph of technical
skill and "idealized conventionalized"
treatment. It is a small bowl of a shape
higher than its breadth, its silver wiring in
a pattern of conventionalized waves, with
flights of tiny silver birds (used to hold
the wires in place). The enamel is of an
exquisite sea-blue color, and is transparent.
The whole idea—a piece of the sea—is
thoroughly carried through, and the effect is
extremely beautiful.
The examples of
cloisonne- from Japan are simply unending,
each different from the last, and almost all
lovely. There is a disposition to withdraw
the wire as much as possible, and in some
instances it is entirely lost, with a very
happy effect, although I think it loses its
cloisonnd characteristics somewhat if the
wire be allowed to disappear altogether. A
departure that I think is a mistake is the
introduction of a "spangled glass" effect
into the ground. This is an innovation
intended to reach the Western fancy, and
indeed I have heard such visitors admiring it
with perfectly artless simplicity.
In
going through the Japanese exhibit one is
bewildered by the enormous variety, each one
of the eight thousand or more being a unique
specimen. To do them each justice a separate
description would be requisite for every one.
For the casual visitor the idea of grasping
and recollecting in detail more than one or
two becomes quite hopeless, and he finally
carries away a jumbled remembrance of immense
incense burners in fantastic forms; gigantic
globes with multicolored dragons writhing
around them; towering jars with whole gardens
of pale flowers of the chrysanthemum blooming
against their massive sides; others with a
rich drapery (simulated) thrown with apparent
carelessness over their broad shoulders.
Every phase of nature has been drawn upon by
these accomplished artists; every fleeting
tint of atmosphere; every momentary movement
of bird or beast, fish or mythical monster,
has been seized and set forever into the
imperishable metal.
Where all are so
good it is hard to pick out individuals;
still some have more remarkable exhibits than
others. Yoshitano Kamano, of Yokohama, has a
large exhibit in various styles. A splendid
pair of large vases have a dark-blue ground
with sprays of wisteria blossoms; a fine
incense burner, very varied in form, and
rising to a great height, are among the very
finest cloisonne" work, while a small vase of
the "lost wiring," in a beautifully soft
"jade" green, with faint impressions of white
flowers on it, reaches the highest perfection
in this style.
Suzuki Honda Vlo, of
Nagoya, have an exhibit of many small
articles, each one of the finest wiring and
finish in workmanship and artistic design.
They also show one fine and large jar covered
with minute work of the greatest excellence.
Varied as the tints employed are, the jar as
a whole is beautifully harmonized into a soft
brownish green effect. The polish of this jar
is remarkably good, and the surface of the
enamel is quite flawless. A companion jar was
made, but unfortunately was destroyed in the
great earthquake of 1891, when over 1,000,000
people perished and thousands of houses and
temples were burned.
B. (Bunzaemon)
Kawaguchi, a
large manufacturer of cloisonne in Nagoya,
sends a large exhibit of great globular and
other jars, with much merit and enterprise in
his selections.
N. (Naosaburo of
Hyogo) Yamamoto, of Kobe,
has some delightful lantern stands in sea
blue, with dragons curling among the foamy
waves at the base and phenixes flying around
the bell-shaped tops, the sides of the
lanterns proper being made of pierced brass.
Shirozaemon Suzuki, Seizaemon
Tsunekawa, Jinpei1 Tsukamoto, Bunzaemon
Kawaguchi, and Jinnoye Ohta are all from
Nagoya, and among them furnish a great
quantity of cloisonnes. Jinnoye Ohta sends one
very distinctive jar, representing a sunset
sky, with a green landscape and the Temple of
Niko. Theeffectof the dark trees against the
sky is well given.
The Kausai Trading
Company send large and lovely incense
burners; Suzuki (Shirozaemon), of Nagoya, a "koro" (incense
burner) of ancient design and perfect
execution. The list of cloisonnes is
never-ending, but there are a few specimens
of enamel which must not be overlooked. They
are all in one case. A small silver tray by
Kobayashi, of Tokyo, has an open-work border
of chrysanthemums in brilliant enamels and
more of the flowers on the tray itself; T. N.
Hiratsuka, Tokyo, little silver open-work
incense burner, exquisitely ornamented with
enamels; Y. (Yahei) Oseki, Tokyo, small silver flower
vase, the base and neck diamond shaped and
ornamented at the corners with enamels, the
bowl being of cloisonne with a lovely
pale-green ground design of colored phoenixes,
etc. This maker sends another delightful
little object—a silver bowl with a highly
relieved dragon in enamels at the bottom of
it. K. Kobayashi, of Tokyo, sends a small
silver flower vase, with here and there a
life-colored chrysanthemum enameled on the
bowl, the handles made of two fluttering
butterflies in blue enamels. He sends also a
tiny teapot of similar design, but with the
handle of carved ivory—a monkey climbing down
a branch. The case contains the very choicest
bits of the Tokyo exhibit and shows a small
but very valuable bowl, imitating the old
"Imari" ware, quite a perfect thing in color
and execution.
Space fails in
describing the really wonderful exhibition
that the Japanese have sent. The patience and
skill and the time expended on it, together
with the romantic details attached to many of
the objects, make it, to my thinking,
entirely the most fascinating of all the
displays here. It is to be hoped that the
Japanese will feel that their labors have
been appreciated. |
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