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Click here to return to Top Menu for Fairs/Flea Markets Fujita Kyohei FEATURE STORY Tokyo Jan. 31, 2001 SHINWA ART AUCTION 4-2-15-2F Ginza Chuo-ku, Tokyo, 104-0061 In Japan: TEL 03-5250-0005 Tokyo had just had a huge snow storm a few days before the Shinwa pottery auction and the streets were still glistening. That didn't stop collectors from turning up for the 5:30 pm opening of the auction. It was the first time for me and I just figured I'd be an observer this time. There were 145 lots up for grabs and the auctioneer began, believe it or not, with six lots by glass artist Fujita Kyohei. Then after short bidding on these items (they averaged 160,000 yen-mostly smaller pieces) it was into the pots. First up was a nice aka-Shino chawan by Yamada Kazu. Although he's based in Fukui he produces mostly Mino wares. Kato Tokuro gave Yamada the ultimate stamp of approval years ago when he said, 'That boy is good.' Yamada Kazu chawan Kaneshige Toyo tokkuri Usually the first lots are smaller pieces but this time there were few to be found. In past catalogues I've seen about a dozen guinomi (sake cups) but this time not one was to be seen. Probably better for me as I would have been tempted -- I was tempted by one piece though -- a fabulous Kaneshige Toyo tokkuri that had his great tsuchi aji and powerful form -- just one pour..... Matsui Kosei chawan An early Matsui Kosei chawan with brown and white stripes(looked like an ice cream dessert!) fell for 190,000 yen to a bidder way back in the room. It seemed that all the major players were in the back- I can understand why- they had more room to stretch out, the other seats were so close together- I thought I was on the verge of getting economy class syndrome. Shimaoka Tatsuzo plates Two medium sized Shimaoka plates came up, one had calligraphy in the middle(kotobuki-best wishes) and three yorokobi's(joy) on the outside. A rare piece, but not that good I thought- it went for 110,000 yen. The better of the two- one with his trademark spinning red and green pinwheels- was grabbed for 170,000 yen after a few bidders went back and forth until the other just shook his head. Next the auction got into the porcelain swing with items from Tokuda, Takahashi, Inoue, Fukami, Kawase, and Suzuki being offered; they all sold. After the porcelain portion there were some average chawan by Kato Kozo- I've seen better- one was a Nezumi Shino and the other, an early piece, was an e-Shino very much looking like an Arakawa copy. One boring piece then followed another with a very uninteresting Hagi platter by Tahara TobeeXll. I think this lot took about ten seconds for only one poor soul raised his paddle and the rest all had their heads down. It went to the lucky loser for 90,000 yen. Kato Kozo chawan Tahara Tobee Xll Eiraku Zengoro XVI chawan Miyagawa Kosai chawan Miyagawa Kosai mizusashi Then it was into the floral Kyoto pieces that surprised me with the amount of interest they drew. Far outside my own tastes, they had people raising their paddles left and right. A few chawan by Eiraku and Miyagawa fetched a little over 200,000 yen each with Miyagawa's mizusashi going for well over that amount. Eiraku Zengoro XVI kogo A small and delightful kogo by Eiraku showing a carp jumping out of some waves went well over it's 150,000 yen estimate after some intense bidding and ended being sold for 360,000 yen- it was a nice piece. Some so-so Bizen pieces followed- mostly Kaneshige Kosuke sculptures. There was a very nice set of six long plates by Kakurezaki Ryuichi that were stunning though- those were lot 41. Kaneshige Kosuke sculpture Kakurezaki Ryuichi six long plates Fujiwara Yu chawan Nakazato Taroemon chawan Miura Koheiji cutesy porcelain Some uninspired 'names' followed, bland chawan by Fujiwara Yu, cutesy porcelain by Miura Koheiji, and two Karatsu chawan by Nakazato Taroemon that almost put me to sleep. The highlight of the auction was when it hit lot 127- that was a major Rosanjin hachi(bowl) inspired by Kenzan. Bidding started at 18,000,000 yen and soon boiled down to two obviously overheating attendees. Back and forth with bids jumping by 1,000,000 increments- when the auctioneer announced 29,000,000 it was too much for one and bidding was over. I'm not sure who bought it but I imagine it will find its way into some museum. Kitaohji Rosanjin bowl Itaya Hazan floral vase Another major piece up was a rare floral vase by Itaya Hazan. Hazan was a very influential potter and teacher in the early to mid 20th century and had only a rather small output. The Idemitsu Museum in Tokyo has the finest Hazan collection in the world. This particular piece sold for 34,000,000 yen. Hamada Shoji plate A few more lots followed, including a huge Hamada charger that is the finest I've ever seen- it too was the focus of some heavy bidding and was sold for 5,200,000 yen. It was a fairly exciting event but now I knew I had to stand up- the seating was truly horrendous. Almost all of the lots sold, even the mediocre ones, and I'll be there again for the next one in a few months- maybe I'll even take home a guinomi.....