by KATAYAMA Masahiko (b. 1957)
Heisei period, 1980s
Lacquer – makie, with shell and metal inlays
28.2 x 31.2 x 5.8 cm.
Signed. Sealed wrapping cloth.
Signed and sealed tomobako
In a lyrical evocation of the regenerative power of Spring, Katayama has here created a Poem Card Box, shikishi bako, in which the delicate fronds of a willow tree are depicted in a range of makie techiques of gold, eggshell and mother-of-pearl inlays, with flashes of new green shoots. The whole is set against a rich golden ground with bold hyomon inlays, and captures the gently swaying characteristics of the plant as the design wraps seamlessly around the sides of the lid. It is a work of great sophistication and technical accomplishment.
Katayama Masahiko graduated from the Kanazawa University of Art Design Department in 1980, where his graduation work was awarded. That same year he apprenticed as a maki-e shi under Living National Treasure Oba Shogyo (1916-2012), an artist especially skilled in hyomon technique. He has since exhibited with the Nihon Dento Kogeiten National Traditional Crafts Exhibition, and been regularly awarded at the Kanazawa Crafts Competition, the Kanazawa Lacquer Art Exhibition, and the Ishikawa Prefectural Art Exhibition, among others. In 1991 he took the Grand Prize at the 1991 Ishikawa Modern Art Exhibition, and now serves as a judge at the Ishikawa prefectural Modern Art Fair.