Kawano Shoko (Japanese, b. 1957), Purity

Heisei era (1989-2019), 2004, Madake bamboo and rattan, with removable cylinder to center, custom wooden storage box tomobako inscribed by artist, orange cloth with inscribed by artist together with red artist's seal.
9 3/4 in., 15 in. diameter
Kawano Shoko was born in 1957 on Kyushu Island and he studied at the Oita Prefecture Beppu Technical College,under such esteemed teachers as Morigami Jin, who has two art works in this auction. Shoko won the highly coveted Cotsen Bamboo Price in 2002. From 2008 to 2013, he lived on Sado Island and taught a number of aspiring artists, including Watanabe Chiaki. This handled flower basket plaited in tight open-work twill plaiting with a radiating-line construction rim, is a signature style of Shoko. The art of ikebana in Japan is an important and revered practice, the seasonal selection and arrangement of the flora and fauna equal to the art of the container holding them. This bamboo and rattan basket is light and balanced deserving of the title by the artist "Purity."

Purchased from Tai Gallery in 2007.
Private Collection, Wilmington, North Carolina
Additional high-resolution photos are available at www.lelandlittle.com

Good estate condition