Fuchi/Kashira Mito School

[Exclus1ve]

Hello!
Recently, I had the opportunity to see and examine F/K works by the Mito school in person. The work is of medium quality, but I would still like to know the name of the artist. Additionally, someone could provide detailed information about the depicted scene. 

Edited Sunday at 06:58 PM by Exclus1ve

[Exclus1ve]

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Edited Sunday at 07:28 PM by Exclus1ve

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A more famous and high-quality work by Hagiya Katsuhira

[Exclus1ve]

Signed Sekijoken Taizan Motozane

 

https://www.sothebys.com/en/buy/auction/2023/the-samurai-Japanese-arms-and-armour/a-tsuba-signed-sekijoken-taizan-motozane-and-kao

[Jack Zacao]

高瀨榮壽，he was pretty famous, but not sure if the work is authentic 

[Jack Zacao]

https://www.seiyudo.com/ko-041024.htm

another example of his work

[Jack Zacao]

I also have doubts these belong to a set. The fuchi seems to be iron ground or looks different in material and quality than those of the kashira. Fuchi is definitely better and may be authentic 

[Rivkin]

Not being a tosogu specialist, but to me FK looks more like late Hamano Nara rather than Mito per se.

Would love to have the first tsuba though....

[Jack Zacao]

Just to add 

高瀨榮壽is a student of 泰山元孚

[Exclus1ve]

Jack, Kirill, thank you for the comments! I think it's a gimei because the quality of the artwork could be better, and the signature is particularly crooked and unexpressive.

 

Otherwise, it seems to be a popular theme among artists, and maybe someone has more examples?

Edited Monday at 11:07 PM by Exclus1ve

[Jake6500]

I think one of the big giveaways that this is gimei is in the fingers on the fuchi. Granted this is no doubt even smaller than the pictures make it look, fine details like fingers and hands are often a good way to tell the overall quality of works and the fingers here seem to lack the finesse of a master craftsman.

 

Not sure I agree with Kirill either, overall I do not get the Hamano school vibe from these pieces. I can see where this idea has come from as both the Hamano and Mito schools were influenced by the earlier Nara and Goto schools making them stylistically similar. Both schools were known for using iroe takazogan like in these examples on a shibuichi, shakudo or in this case an iron base. 

 

One of the characteristic elements of Hamano work that you would often see in Hamano pieces and which you wouldn't generally see in Mito school work are expressive gold eyes. Mito work generally features thinner eyes more characteristic of the Nara school which I think this set (and the higher quality tsuba example) align with. You see these eyes in some late Hamano school pieces too so this is by no means conclusive one way or the other, but it does give some indication.

 

Mito work is also known for its "soft" style whereas Hamano school work often includes more powerful, striking contrasts. The colour combinations featured in the kashira of this set give off more of a Mito vibe to me as the parasol (specifically the colour/metal choice) seems to soften the contrast of the mixed-metal design.

 

On the flip side, the contrast between iron and gold on the robe of what I presume is a court minister(?) in the fuchi does resemble the type of takazogan contrast you would see in both Mito and Hamano school work, so it is hard to definitively rule one way or the other. Both schools also feature takanikubori prominently like that seen in this set.

Edited Tuesday at 02:02 AM by Jake6500