274 - MASATOSHI: TAKEDA HORSE (TAKEDA UMI)

MASATOSHI: TAKEDA HORSE (TAKEDA UMI) By Nakamura Tokisada (Masatoshi), signed Masatoshi 雅俊 Japan, Tokyo, April 1993 Published: Sagemonoya (2013) Masatoshi Netsuke, no. 24. Amusingly carved in tsuge (boxwood) as a corpulent horse balancing improbably on its hind legs, the forelegs drawn tightly against its bulging belly and the head pulled dramatically back toward its massive haunches. The exaggerated proportions - the enormous hindquarters, protruding stomach, and compressed stance - lend the animal a decidedly humorous appearance. The smoothly polished body contrasts with the finely incised mane and long flowing tail, which descends along the back and coils around the fetlocks, cleverly stabilizing the composition. The face is animated by alert ears, inlaid umimatsu (black coral) eyes, flared nostrils, and a slightly open mouth revealing the teeth. Natural himotoshi. Signed MASATOSHI. HEIGHT 7.2 cm Condition: Excellent condition. The model, known as Takeda Horse (Takeda Umi), was conceived in collaboration with the Japanese print designer Takeda Hideo (b. 1948) and completed by Masatoshi in April 1993. Its highly exaggerated anatomy and deliberately comic character distinguish it from Masatoshi’s more naturalistic equine carvings. Masatoshi is known to have carved at least one further version of the composition in darker wood and in a slightly altered pose. Nakamura Tokisada (1915-2001), better known by his art name Masatoshi, was one of the foremost Japanese netsuke carvers of the 20th century. Trained initially under his father, he worked in the traditional Edo-period manner while developing a highly individual style, and became particularly closely associated with the collector and scholar Raymond Bushell, who assembled an extensive group of his works and co-authored The Art of Netsuke Carving with him. Takeda Hideo (b. 1948) is a Japanese sculptor, printmaker, and graphic artist born in Osaka and trained in sculpture at Tama Art University, where he received his M.A. in 1973. Known for his bold graphic style, exaggerated forms, and often irreverent humor, Takeda achieved early recognition as a cartoonist before developing an internationally exhibited body of prints and works on paper. Literature comparison: Compare a related wood netsuke of a fat horse with similarly exaggerated proportions, by the same artist, signed Tokisada, dated 1961, illustrated in Bushell, Raymond (1992), The Art of Netsuke Carving by Masatoshi as told to Raymond Bushell, no. 262.