Baskets

"Following an essay outlining the evolution of bamboo art in Japan and a small section introducing earlier Chinese baskets and Japanese baskets in Chinese style, the bulk of the catalogue is organized by artistic lineages, starting with the founding father Hayakawa Shokosai I (1815-1897) and his successors and moving on to the other great craft dynasties based in Osaka, including large sections devoted to the Yamamoto Chikuryosai, Tanabe Chikuunsai, and Maeda Chikubosai lines. From catalogue number 192 the focus moves to the Iizuka line in Tochigi Prefecture and Tokyo, with numerous works by Hosai II, Rokansai, and Shokansai. The story is then continued into the post-war period when artistic basketry came to be practised in many other parts of Japan and a new generation of masters emerged, supported by patrons in both Japan and the United States. Each of the fourteen sections of dramatic colour plates (in most cases with both general and detail images) is followed by a section printed on matt paper with photographs of all the signatures and box inscriptions and biographies of each artist. The catalogue concludes with a bibliography, glossary, and artist index."--