Pair of Japanese folding screens (byôbu) of poets from ‘Hyakunin isshu’ 百人一首

A very colourful and captivating large six-panel byôbu (folding screen) with a refined continuous painting of a luscious flower garden filled with many different types of chrysanthemums (kiku), next to a winding river. This multi-coloured painting is set on a shiny gold-leaf background, and the chrysanthemum flowers are painted by using shell paste (gofun) in low relief. Several clutches with a great variety of chrysanthemum flowers are in full bloom and they each show their unique form and colour. Varying from white, red, yellow and pink. The flowers bloom all around and on different kinds of bamboo fences and trellises. In Japan chrysanthemums are believed to represent happiness, love, longevity and joy. The panels are surrounded by two silk borders, a thin black one, and a wide brown one. The screen is protected by a black and red negoro’nuri...

An elaborate, large six-panel byôbu (folding screen) featuring a detailed genre painting on gold leaf, capturing the vibrancy of festive scenes from the Edo period. Central to the p...

Refined, tall two-panel byôbu (folding screen) completely adorned with ‘Wajima Ryûsaku’ lacquer by the Nitten award winning artist Mitsuo Takana (1956). Featuring five refined images inspired by woodblock prints from the famous series ‘Tôkaidô gojûsan tsugi’ (The fifty-three stations of the Tokaido road), like the 1st station Nihonbashi, the 10th station Hakone, and the 21st station Okabe. The design is executed in hiramaki-e (low-relief lacquer design) in shades of gold, silver, heightened by some multi-coloured details. Set on a shiny black lacquer substrate. Signed in red lacquer in the lower right corner. Including original signed & sealed wooden tomobako (storage box). The front with an inscription about the contents as described above. The inside: ‘Friend of the Nitten Exhibition Takana Mitsuo’ - Seal: ‘Hikari’. ‘Lacquer artist Wajima Ryûsaku’ - Seal: ‘Ryûsaku’. Mitsuo Takana was born 1956 in Wajima, Ishikawa prefecture. He won several awards during exhibitions like: Ishikawa Contemporary Art Exhibition, Japan Artisans' Association Exhibition and the well-known Nitten Exhibition. Dimensions: Height 57.48 in/146 cm, Total width 66.92 in/170 cm (2 x 33.46 in/85 cm), Depth 1.10 in/2.8 cm. Weight 56.21 lb/25.5 kg. Wajima lacquerware...

Beautiful, large two-panel byôbu (room divider) with a serene painting of red-leaved bamboo and rocks on an oxidized silver leaf background. Silver leaf continuously undergoes the process of oxidation, which creates a beautiful aged patina. On the left an inscription from a ‘Zekku’ poem by the Chinese poet Yang Zai (1271?1323), titled: Shan shang zhu (bamboo (painted) on a fan). Translated as : Why would people plant a lot of bamboos? The shade of a single culm is also beautiful. In the autumn night it rocks on the wind, And the fresh sound echoes in my dream. Dated: Shôwa, the year kôshin (1938). Signature unknown...

Floral scene of a "Rimpa School" garden with polychrome chrysanthemum flowers. Six-panel screen painted with pigments on golden rice paper of good size and well preserved. Bold color...

Japanese six-panel screen from the Kano school: Japanese landscape with an elegant crane. Hand painted with mineral pigments and gold leaf inks. The pure gold leaf is laid with great...

A beautiful, alluring, wonderfully composed and engaging hand-painted large pair of six-panel Japanese/Asian Byobu folding screens depicting an almost magical/ mythical village scene...

Antique Byobu Four Panel Screen. Japan, late 19th to early 20th century. Taisho period.