Vintage Sosaku Kokeshi entitled: ‘Kōtei to kōgō’ by Yamanaka, Sanpei (1926-)
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Dimensions: 6-3/8”
Yamanaka-san creates wonderfully painted and decorated dolls in many forms and shapes this pair represents the Imperial pair of royalty and is said to have been created in remembrance of Princess Masako upon her birth in 1888, and are of the so-called Yūsoku Bina style of dolls created for aristocratic families of the day. Each is made of cherry wood and in the 1980s textile fashion of the period beautifully painted with Spring Flowers (one in blue and one in orange) to add to the overall dimension of the garment. The Emperor is in green and the Empress in red with each having an Obi that is defined but un-ornamented wood and in relief. Both faces are expressive with simple horizontal eyes and a small carved concave nose. Each doll incorporates the Buddhist circular dots on the forehead which are referred to as Urna and are considered an auspicious mark. Each doll portrays expressive traditional hairstyles and is topped with the ‘Mage’ as part of their hair treatments. The Emperor is signed by the artist on the bottom of the doll.
Condition: Mint means that the piece retains its original craft/workmanship showing a wonderful-developed patina commensurate which suggests no degree of wear that corresponds to its vintage. It is void of damage, cracks, breakage, or repairs and meets all the standards of the collectible Sosaku Kokeshi.
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Artisan | Woodworker: Yamanaka, Sanpei | 1926-
Origin:
Born in Yonezawa, Yamagata Prefecture, Yamanaka-san began his artistic career as a photographer, after majoring in chemistry. However, rather than develop a career in Traditional Yamagata doll making, Yamanaka-san used his art background to join the Sosaku Kokeshi movement. A multiple award winner, he won the Ministry of Education Award at the all Nippon Modern Kokeshi Exhibition in 1979.
Collector's note – descriptive qualities, standard characteristics & ornamentation styles:
Yamanaka-san creates wonderfully painted and decorated dolls in many forms and shapes. He may utilize a palette of soft watercolor rings in the Rokuro-moyo manner, to create a suggestion of a rainbow, because in Buddhism, the rainbow is “the highest state achievable before attaining Nirvana, where individual desire and consciousness are sublimated”. On numerous occasions, Yamanaka adds painted flowers to add to the overall dimension of the garment that it is representing. This is not to say that he does not enjoy the natural qualities of wood. Controlled carving adds textures that are neat, random, and sometimes repetitive, and provides decoration to his dolls. The carving contrasts nicely with the natural grain of the wood. Dolls portray wonderful traditional hairstyles through the use of “chattering’ and controlled carving. His head and facial designs are most expressive, particularly with figures of children.
Artist's Signature:
