Contemporary Lacquer Vase by Wajima

This unique Kanshitsu Bachi bowl is a remarkable piece of Japanese lacquer artistry from the Showa period (20th century). Traditionally, lacquer craftsmen applied excess lacquer from...

Beautiful Japanese Lacquered Tray with Raden Abalone Shell Decoration This beautiful Japanese lacquered tray is a stunning example of Japanese craftsmanship. It is made of high-quality wood and is decorated with abalone shell inlay, a technique known as raden. Raden is a centuries-old Japanese art form that involves inlaying mother-of-pearl, abalone shell, or other materials into a lacquer surface. The technique originated in China and was introduced to Japan in the Nara period...

A Fine Lacquer Incense Burner with Makie Gold Design. This fine lacquer incense burner is a stunning example of Japanese craftsmanship. It is dated to the Edo-Meiji period, 19th cen...

This beautiful lacquer worker bowl, known as “Kanshitsu Bachi,” hails from the Showa period of the 20th century. Crafted with a deep, rich pattern that...

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...

Unusual lacquer vase depicting wrestlers in different poses and a drummer. The figures and banderoles are painted with gold, silver and black color onto the brown/red lacquer. The va...

This is a beautiful example of the perfection of Japanese Minimalism design that dates to the Showa or possibly Taisho era. The simplicity of the circular form and minimal decoration...

The artist calls this vessel a flower basket in the calligraphy on the box. Showa period (1926-1989) black lacquer container in square form with notched c...