23729 Imperial Household Artist, Ceramic Master Hazan Itaya (Ice Flower Incense Burner)

Height 10.2cm Diameter 10.0cm

He graduated from the sculpture department of the Tokyo School of Fine Arts (studied alongside Okakura Tenshin and Takamura Kokun), won third place for his "Porcelain Crystal Glazed Vase with Gold and Purple Design" at the Tokyo Industrial Exposition in 1907, and was subsequently appointed an Imperial Household Artist. He was the first potter to receive the Order of Culture, and declined an offer to be designated a Living National Treasure in 1955, because he considered pottery to be an art form. As a potter who studied the fundamentals of art, he was a pioneer who established modern art pottery rather than traditional pottery, and is regarded as a great potter without equal in modern times, making this work by Japan's greatest potter, Itaya Hazan (1872-1963). His representative works include the "Ho-ko Colored Porcelain Vase with Rare Fruit Design" (Important Cultural Property in the Collection of the Izumiya Hakukokan Museum of Art), the "Colored Porcelain Vase with Enju Design" (Collected by Idemitsu Museum of Arts), and the "Colored Porcelain Vase with Bird and Fruit Design" (Tsurui Museum of Art), making him a potter who has had an immeasurable impact on the history of modern pottery. This is Itaya Hayama's masterpiece.

"Bokkaji" is a style of porcelain made by applying transparent glaze to a white base. It was created from the study of ancient Chinese ceramics and imitates the shadow blue style of the Southern Song Dynasty.

His thin-walled carvings, a specialty of his, are highlighted by the precise carving techniques he honed under the Imperial Household Artist and sculptor Takamura Kokun at the Sculpture Department of the Tokyo School of Fine Arts, and, combined with the neat forms created by the hands of Genda Ichimatsu, the solitary potter who continued to support Itaya Hazan from behind the scenes, they exude the utmost elegance and clarity.

Among the incense burners he continued to create until his later years, this one is particularly wonderful and exudes the highest level of artistry. It is a masterpiece with many highlights, including the high-quality agate fireplace and the tense box inscription.

Because it is a masterpiece with a large swing and a truly impressive presence, it is kept as a museum piece in various art museums and is a masterpiece among masterpieces, with the same model featured in exhibition catalogs.