Bamboo basket for the ikebana flower arrangement, made by the great bamboo artist Tanabe Chikuunsai I (1877-1937). Using natural light-colored bamboo, he plaited the body in a herringbone pattern. The incised signature on the bottom reads Chikuunsai made this. Comes with its original fitted kiri-wood tomobako storage box, inscribed on the outside “White Bamboo Flared Basket” and signed on the lid interior Sakaifu Nansō Chikuunsai with a seal mark. One of the most important bamboo artists active in the Kansai region in the first half of the twentieth century, Tanabe Chikuunsai I worked with Maeda Chikubosai from about 1912, making high-end baskets. His work is in the collections of major US and international museums.
Tanabe Chikuunsai
1920s
Bamboo
27 x 27 x 39 cm
Historic
Japan
New York
$10,000
Irthi Contemporary Crafts Council
