211 - KINKOZAN: A VERY LARGE (47 CM) AND IMPRESSIVE SATSUMA CERAMIC ‘SPRING AND AUTUMN’ VASE

KINKOZAN: A VERY LARGE (47 CM) AND IMPRESSIVE SATSUMA CERAMIC ‘SPRING AND AUTUMN’ VASE By the Kinkozan company, signed Dai Nihon Kyoto Kinkozan zo Japan, Meiji period (1868-1912) Finely potted, the imposing baluster body tapering gently toward the base and rising through high angular shoulders to a waisted neck with a broad circular mouth and straight rim. The exterior exquisitely decorated in vivid polychrome enamels and gilt with two large opposing rectangular panels presenting contrasting seasonal scenes. One depicts a spring garden with two elegantly dressed beauties and a young girl from a wealthy household strolling beneath flowering cherry branches. The opposing panel evokes late summer and early autumn, with a cockerel and hen pecking for seeds amid a profusion of ripening and flowering plants, including loofah, aubergines, beans, corn, Chinese lanterns, and susuki (pampas grass), with a pair of sparrows perched on trailing branches above. The pictorial reserves are set against a lustrous deep cobalt-blue ground densely enriched in gilt with repeated stylized foliate motifs. The flattened shoulders are further embellished with mon interwoven among stylized chidori (plovers) above waves, while the foot and neck are enclosed by richly patterned geometric and foliate borders. The underside signed in gilt Dai Nihon Kyoto KINKOZAN zo [made by Kinkozan, Kyoto, Great Japan]. HEIGHT 47 cm Provenance: Bonhams, Fine Japanese Art, 9 November 2017, London, lot 266 (sold for GBP 6,000 or approx. EUR 9,700 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing). French private collection, acquired from the above. Condition: Excellent condition, with no restorations or repairs visible under UV light. Some very light typical rubbing to gilding. The Kinkozan company was among the most successful producers of so-called Kyo-Satsuma (Kyoto Satsuma) wares. Like their counterparts in Osaka, Yokohama, and Tokyo, Kinkozan’s production reflects Kyoto’s response to strong Western demand for finely painted Japanese ceramics during the Meiji period. Following the international exposure of Japanese art at the Paris Exposition of 1867, the rise of Japonisme in Europe led to a significant increase in exports, with Kinkozan wares admired for their delicate brushwork, refined compositions, and harmonious use of color and gold. The exquisite decoration of the present vase is particularly notable for its carefully conceived seasonal contrast. The tranquil spring scene of beauties beneath cherry blossoms is balanced by an exceptionally detailed late-summer and autumn composition of domestic fowl amid ripening crops and seasonal plants. Framed by the deep cobalt-blue and densely gilded surrounding ornament, the two expansive pictorial reserves create a striking interplay between intimate naturalistic imagery and the sumptuous decorative vocabulary characteristic of Kinkozan’s finest production. Auction comparison: Compare a closely related Satsuma vase, decorated with pheasants and chickens, attributed to Kinkozan, 60.5 cm high, at Christie’s, The Avo Krikorian Collection: Innovation and Inspiration of Meiji Period Design, 19 February 2007, Geneva, lot 40 (sold for CHF 28,800 or approx. EUR 33,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing). Compare a closely related Satsuma vase, decorated with mandarin ducks among wisteria and a rooster with hen walking in a bamboo grove, by Kinkozan, 40.6 cm high, at Bonhams, Fine Japanese Works of Art, 22 March 2011, New York, lot 3139 (sold for USD 18,300 or approx. EUR 23,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing).