Contemporary Japanese Urushi Lacquer Sculpture

Japanese Lacquer Rhino Sculpture by Someya Satoshi (1983-). A hand-molded lacquer sculpture that depicts a fantasy beast "Rhino". The artist uses century-old traditional techniques and symbols but with an innovative contemporary energy that borders mysticism, shamanism and surrealism. Found objects were equally treated as part of the meticulous designs as the elaborate Maki-e and shell inlays. According to the press of Honolulu Museum of Art: "Someya Satoshi has been described as “one of the most significant contemporary lacquer artists working in Japan today.” (Japan Times, 12 Dec. 2013) His work combines objects of daily use, such as bathing buckets, serving trays, and soup bowls, with a wide array of natural materials, including animal bones, horns and antlers, sand, stones, leaves and branches. In the process, he implements a range of traditional lacquer methods passed down from pre-modern eras, such as the kanshitsu or “dry lacquer” technique, the origins of which date to Japan’s Nara period (710–784). After creating his forms, he embellishes them with designs inspired by calligraphy, traditional Japanese textile patterns, and even contemporary manga or comic books. His work defies ordinary definitions of lacquer art and successfully challenges the perceived limits of this extremely difficult and, in some ways, most conservative of traditional Japanese art forms". His work was exhibited in US such as Honolulu Museum of Art, Minneapolis Institute of Art, Morikami Museum etc. For a complete resume of the artist, see the artist's page in Imura Art Gallery. Reference: For a very similar Bull Sculpture see Hard Bodies Contemporary Japanese Lacquer...

A wooden vessel used from the Meiji era to the Taisho era. Probably a beech tree. It is made by hollowing out. It's very cool, isn't it? It is a lacquered tall foot round tray made ...

A wooden vessel used from the Meiji era to the Taisho era. Probably a beech tree. It is made by hollowing out. It's very cool, isn't it? It is a round bowl made of one piece of wood...

Vintage Urushi red lacquer tray with six stemmed cups - each cup gilt decorated with a different floral, leaf or bamboo specimen - the tray gilt decorated wit...

Fine quality contemporary Japanese hanging vase, black lacquer with inlaid mother-of-pearl. This piece is signed and comes with its original paul...

This is a beautifully designed and fabricated Japanese pagoda-shaped tall chest of drawers. The chest dates to the late 20th or early 21st century and is in very good to excellent ov...