Sake Pourers with Bamboo and Bellflowers

This pair of sake pourers adorned with with bamboo and bellflowers is attributed to the founder of the Seifū Studio, Seifū Yohei I (1801–1861).

Yohei I, the lineage founder, was born to the Yasuda family in the city of Kanazawa, which faces the Sea of Japan. His home province of Kaga (in present-day Ishikawa Prefecture) produced its own ceramics, known as Kutani ware, but for his training as a potter, Yohei I chose Kyoto, which produced the more technically advanced porcelain ware. He moved to Kyoto around the 1820s and became apprenticed to Nin’ami Dohachi, a leading potter in the city. He later struck out on his own, and it is likely that his teacher gave him the name Seifu Yohei. His works include many exquisitely painted copies of Chinese porcelain, and he also produced stoneware with overglaze color enamels that emulated works in the style of Ogata Kenzan (1663–1743) at which his teacher excelled.

Two cylindrical, stoneware sake pourers feature cream-colored upper sections decorated with blue underglaze paintings: bamboo on the left and bellflowers on the right. A network of fine cracks covers the slipped surface, while gold lacquer repairs chips along the flared rims. Both vessels transition into unglazed, matte brownish-gray bases. Curved handles attach to the necks, which narrow slightly above the painted motifs.

Sake Pourers with Bamboo and Bellflowers

c. 1844–57

Seifū Yohei I

(Japanese, 1801–1861)

Japan, Edo period (1615–1868)

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