Vintage Sosaku Kokeshi entitled: “Hajirai | Shyness” by Murakami, Ken-ichi
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Dimensions: 8-3/4”h
Shown is a wonderful stylized form created from the turning and simple honest use of the natural grain of the wood forming the details of the garment. Her head is almost covered while peeping out to see what is around her. The piece has the artist's signature and a red impressed stamp on the bottom.
Condition: Excellent, original condition, with no fading or loss of color and consistent with age. The piece meets all the standards of collectible Folk Art.
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Artisan | Woodworker: Murakami, Kenichi | 1929-
Origin:
A multi-award winner, Murakami-san was born in Yamagata City. Though his family were well-known woodcraftsmen, Kenichi studied oil painting in the early 1940s, but began training and creating Sosaku Kokeshi by 1946. He primarily creates dolls with minimal decoration, with an emphasis on a variety of woodworking techniques. He is a multi-prize winning artist including the coveted Prime Minister Award.
Collector's note – descriptive qualities, standard characteristics & ornamentation styles:
This artist loved to capture the innocence of a young child. Murakami-san prided himself on producing wonderful, textural pieces created by deep carving and horizontal cut lines to suggest and reinforce the subject. His dolls could be painted, like illustrating the yukata, or left unornamented using simple lines to suggest the use of a snow coat, (Mino) during the winter season. Sumi’-e was often employed to capture the spirit of the subject.
Artist's signature:
