

Japanese Painting
Vintage Japanese Watercolor by Chiura Obata (1885-1975)
Age:1940s
Descriptive qualities& condition:
Dimensions: 15-1/2"h x 20-3/4"w
Being offered is a multi-colored watercolor that was done in the 1940s with the artist’s signature and title in Japanese script and the artist’s seal in red (the Ota family told us that this piece was unique because most of his work just prior and after joining the university was signed in English). The subject focuses on root vegetables, specifically Daikon and Bamboo root (two of the most popular vegetables symbolizing good luck for the year to come and linked to longevity, wealth, and happiness).
Obata received his painting and specifically Sumi-e' training in Japan at the age of seven, and he learned how to create “color” variations providing inspiration for the expansion of his works including a limited number of full-color images. Obata drew every day of his life to keep the fluid precision of his brush throughout the decades of his career. Obata taught at Berkeley for more than two decades; despite being a University professor he was interned along with thousands of Japanese Americans in 1942.
When we had our Japanese Gallery in Carmel, (1998-2009) we were told by the Japanese children who inherited this piece and whose parents had a home in a compound of homes perched above Whaler’s Cove at Point Lobos and were first-generation (“Issei”). The family represented a small number of growers in the Salinas Valley in the 40s and said their parents had this subject specifically selected for them, and obtained it after the internment. They said they were told that it was signed in Japanese script and not signed in English because of cultural respect for the small Monterey Peninsula Japanese population. We purchased this piece in 1998.
Condition: Excellent meaning that the piece retains its original craft/workmanship corresponding to its vintage with slight foxing and a degree of wear that is only paper tears on the edges and does not affect the painted artwork or signature. Meets all the standards of collectible works on paper and would be wonderful framed to compensate for the paper tears at the edges. NOTE: The main image is with a mat and unframed. The second image is without the mat so that interested parties can see the piece in its entirety. Shipping is based on dimensional weight.