137 - MAEDA CHIKUBOSAI I: A FINE BAMBOO HANAKAGO (FLOWER BASKET)

MAEDA CHIKUBOSAI I: A FINE BAMBOO HANAKAGO (FLOWER BASKET) By Maeda Chikubosai I (1872-1950), signed Chikubosai Japan, c. 1925, Taisho era (1912-1926) Of tall, rounded ovoid form, the body gently broadening toward the center and tapering toward the foot, finely woven from split susudake (smoked bamboo) in mutsume-ami (hexagonal plaiting), with closely spaced horizontal gozame (mat plaiting) creating a regular sequence of open geometric cells. The body is reinforced by slender vertical bamboo members extending upward to form a tall double handle of natural bamboo culms, neatly joined and secured at intervals with fine rattan wrapping and knotting. The mouth is similarly strengthened with concentric bound bamboo courses, while the foot is finished with a tightly wrapped circular rim. Signed underneath CHIKUBOSAI. WIDTH 19 cm, HEIGHT 42 cm Condition: Excellent condition. Minor wear to the underside. Maeda Chikubosai I was among the most important bamboo artists active in the Kansai region during the first half of the 20th century. Around 1912, he worked alongside Tanabe Chikuunsai I, one of the founding figures of modern bamboo basketry in Sakai, Osaka, and subsequently established his own distinguished career. In the late Taisho period, he made presentation baskets on behalf of the Imperial Household. From 1926 into the late 1930s, he held a series of solo exhibitions at Mitsukoshi in Tokyo. A defining feature of Chikubosai’s work is the masterful use of susudake, a rare and highly prized smoked bamboo reclaimed from the rafters of old farmhouses. Its deep, varied coloration lends a subtle patina and warmth to the surface, enhancing the interplay between material and structure. The present basket exemplifies his refined aesthetic, combining structural clarity, material richness, and technical precision. Museum comparison: Compare a related handled bamboo and rattan hanakago (flower basket) by the same artist, of similar size but with different plaiting, dated c. 1900-1940, 40.6 cm high and 19 cm in diameter, at the Asian Art Museum, San Francisco, Lloyd Cotsen Japanese Bamboo Basket Collection, object number 2006.3.690.