2 - A SUPERB SINGLE-CASE INLAID LACQUER ‘OWL AND WHITE-HEADED BLACK BULBUL’ INRO, ATTRIBUTED TO NOMURA CHOHEI

A SUPERB SINGLE-CASE INLAID LACQUER ‘OWL AND WHITE-HEADED BLACK BULBUL’ INRO, ATTRIBUTED TO NOMURA CHOHEI Attributed to Nomura Chohei, unsigned Japan, late 18th century, Edo period (1615-1868) Of broad rectangular form and oval section, bearing a lustrous roiro ground decorated in gold, black, and red takamaki-e and boldly inlaid in mother-of-pearl. One side depicts a large owl perched upon a gnarled pine branch, its broad body superbly rendered in translucent mother-of-pearl, the finely painted and incised featherwork beneath shimmering through the nacreous surface to remarkable effect. The reverse shows a white-headed black bulbul (shirogashira-kurohiyodori) perched on a slender leafy branch, its contrasting white head boldly inlaid in mother-of-pearl, the dark plumage finely incised, and the beak picked out in brilliant red lacquer. Particularly striking are the prominent eyes of both birds, ingeniously set beneath glass and painted with vivid pupils, lending them an unusually intense and lifelike expression. The richly worked branches in raised gold lacquer provide an elegant sculptural counterpoint to the smooth, luminous inlays. HEIGTH 5.7 cm, LENGTH 8.2 cm Provenance: From the private collection of Alan and Simone Hartman, New York, United States. Alan Hartman (1930-2023) was an influential American art dealer, who took over his parents’ antique business in Manhattan and established the legendary Rare Art Gallery on Madison Avenue, with further locations in Dallas and Palm Beach. His wife Simone (née Horowitz) already served as assistant manager of the New York gallery before the couple were married in 1975, and together they built a renowned collection for over half a century and became noted art patrons, enriching the collections of important museums including the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, which opened the Alan and Simone Hartman Galleries in 2013, as well as the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Brooklyn Museum in New York. Notably, they assembled an impressive collection of Japanese art, focusing on fine netsuke, inro, and lacquer. Condition: Very good condition with minor typical wear mostly limited to the edges including a few tiny nicks and dents to the top surface. Nomura Chohei(sai) was an important lacquer artist who was appointed an official lacquerer to the shogunate in 1767. His work is distinguished by an inventive combination of lacquer with diverse materials, including ceramic, metal, shell, and glass, continuing in a highly individual manner the mixed-media tradition associated with Ogawa Haritsu (Ritsuo, 1663-1747) and his followers. Auction comparison: Compare a closely related two-case shell-inlaid lacquer inro depicting an owl and bird, by Nomura Chohei, signed Choheisai, at Bonhams, The Edward Wrangham Collection of Japanese Art, Part III, 15 May 2012, London, lot 301 (sold for GBP 2,375 or approx. EUR 4,100 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing).