GUNYU, flight by OKADA Yuji (b. 1948)
Heisei period, 2017
Platinum and gold makie, gold and shell inlays
15 x 15 x 11.5 cm
Sealed. Signed, Heian Shiho zo & sealed tomobako
In Japanese art, dragonflies, tombo, signifying late summer, are also symbolic of success in any endeavour. This is because the word tombo is a homophone (having the same pronunciation) as words associated with victory.
Here, seven examples intensely swarm around a cubic space. Each is exquisitely rendered. A rich variety of shell inlays and gold makie captures the iridescence of both body and eyes, while the delicacy of the insects’ wings is drawn out in fine black lacquer and platinum powders. The energy of the hovering and darting insects is emphasised by the swirling patterns of gold and brilliant shell inlays that form the background to the composition.
This is a ‘deep-sleeve’ box of seasoned Japanese cypress, hinoki, first prepared in 2010 to ensure stability as a base for the subsequent lacquer design. The interior is a rich black roiro, while the risers are decorated with a gradated nashiji.
Okada Yuji, professor at the Kyoto Shitsugei Shufuku Kenkyujo (Kyoto Lacquer Art Restoration and Research Institute), is widely acknowledged as one of the leading lacquer artists of Japan, having won numerous awards in the Japanese craft world throughout his career.
His work is regularly exhibited nationally at the Nitten and Nihon Gendai Bijutsu Ten (Japan Contemporary Fine Arts Exhibition), in addition to regional exhibitions. In the West, examples of his work are held in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the New Orleans Museum of Art.