Vase

Object Details

• Artist

  Seifu Yohei III (1851-1914)

• Description

  Vase with narrow mouth and tall, cylindrical neck. Square shoulders and rounded, bulbous body on flat base. Foot trimmed to form footring.

  Clay: Porcelain, footring darkened on surface by use.

  Glaze: Coral-pink enamel glaze applied to interior, exterior and foot. Crackle pattern produced during firing, then stained for emphasis.

  Decoration: Crackling on surface of exterior of this bottle in imitation of Chinese wares.

  Signatures/Inscriptions: Potter's mark in seal script. Two paper labels: "CMK 25", writing missing from second, torn label.

• Marks

  Potter's mark in seal script. Two paper labels: "CMK 25", writing missing from second, torn label.

• Label

  This vase was part of a collection formed by Charles M. Kurtz (1855-1909), during the period when he served as assistant art director for the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago and art director for the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Centennial International Exposition in St. Louis. Kurtz's collecting focused on porcelain with highly colored glazes. Along with these pieces by prominent Japanese potters, Kurtz acquired vases of similar shapes and colors from American and European factories. Kurtz's collection, representative of a broad popular interest in Japanese art in the late nineteenth century, also reflects the growing internationalism in the decoration of ceramics resulting from rapid exchange of information and technology facilitated by the international fairs.

• Provenance

  To ?

  Charles M. Kurtz (1855-1909). [1]

  To 1991

  Isabel S. Kurtz (1901-1991). [2]

  From 1991

  Freer Gallery of Art, bequest of Isabel S. Kurtz (1901-1991). [3]

  Notes:

  [1] Ms. Isabel Kurtz bequeathed the group of Asian ceramics, F1991.19-.44, to the Freer Gallery of Art. These objects had been collected by her father, Charles M. Kurtz, who was a friend of Charles Freer.

  [2] See note 1. Also see Freer Gallery of Art Purchase List after 1920 file, Collections Management Office.

  [3] See note 2.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Previous custodian or owner

  Charles M. Kurtz (1855-1909)

  Isabel S. Kurtz (1901-1991)

• Origin

  Gojozaka, Kyoto, Kyoto prefecture, Japan

• Credit Line

  Bequest of Isabel S. Kurtz

• Type

  Vessel

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1890s

• Name

  Kurtz, Isabel S., Kurtz, Charles M.

• Place

  Kyoto, Japan, Gojozaka, Kyoto prefecture

• Topic

  Porcelain, Art, Kyoto ware, Japanese Art, Ceramics, Meiji era (1868 - 1912)

• Culture

  Japanese

• Object Type

  Vessels (containers)