The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of October 9, 2024

Lid for a Water Container with Peonies

Lid for a Water Container with Peonies

1900–1914
(Japanese, 1851–1914)
Lid: 1.5 x 10 cm (9/16 x 3 15/16 in.)
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

Yohei IV wrote an inscription on the reverse of the inner box lid authenticating the work as one made by his father.

Description

This ceramic is an especially accomplished example of Yohei III’s combination of an all-over translucent colored glaze with molded and carved designs. It features the peony as its primary motif. The water container, or mizusashi, has a green glaze, and its design takes into consideration the rounded shape and the seated position of the host and guests. It begins low on the body with a flower just beginning to open and continues with another flower a bit higher up, with its petals fully extended and beginning to open outward. It finishes with a flower in full bloom, petals and leaves unfurled and spread outward from the center, now occupying almost the entire surface.

The water container once belonged to the Hosokawa family, whose go-between corresponded with Yohei IV about the piece. Yohei IV thanked them for their payment and requested that despite his father’s death in the previous year, they continue to favor the studio with their orders. The letter and its envelope, as well as an auction tag, remain with the object.
  • ?–2022
    James and Christine Heusinger, Berea, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    2022–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Maezaki, Shinya and Sinéad Vilbar. Colors of Kyoto: The Seifū Yohei Ceramic Studio. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 2023. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 53, pp. 2–3 and 128–131
    "Colours of Kyoto, Ceramics From the Yohei Studio." The Asian Art Newspaper: Monthly for Collectors, Dealers, Museums and Galleries 27, no. 1 (November 2023): 8 Mentioned and Reproduced: p. 8
  • Colors of Kyoto: The Seifū Yohei Ceramic Studio. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (August 19, 2023-March 10, 2024).
  • {{cite web|title=Lid for a Water Container with Peonies|url=false|author=Seifū Yohei III|year=1900–1914|access-date=09 October 2024|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2022.197.b