Bottle Vase for Ikebana, Attributed to Takéichi Kawai (1908-1989)

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Bottle Vase, attributed to Takéichi Kawai 250(nicknamed “Bu’ichi”) 1908-1989

Offered is a bottle flask attributed to Takéichi Kawai. Ocassionally, it … Read more Bottle Vase, attributed to Takéichi Kawai 250(nicknamed “Bu’ichi”) 1908-1989

Offered is a bottle flask attributed to Takéichi Kawai. Ocassionally, it can be difficult to tell what is by Kanjiro Kawai or his nephew, Takéichi Kawai. The next to last photo is by Kanjiro and is in the Brooklyn Museum. The last photo is a piece by Takéichi Kawai (offered by Quality Chanoyu Articles). The subtle tones, particularly the soft pink that blends into the white, suggest the work of Kanjiro. However, the overall design resembles that of Takéichi. Just to be safe, I will go with the lesser of the two.

Portions of the following biography come with my gratitude to 2000 Cranes

Kawai Takéichi (nicknamed “Bu’ichi”) 1908-1989:

In the late 1920s in Japan, a small group of artists started the mingei, or "folk craft" movement. It was a reaction to what they saw as the increasing threat of industrialization upon traditional, handmade crafts.

Among those was a group of potters, including Bernard Leach, Hamada Shōji, and Kawai Kanjirō. The works they made were functional, expressive, yet unassuming. As a matter of principle, mingei wares were hardly ever signed.

Among that group of potters was Kawai Takéichi. He was the nephew of Kawai Kanjirō and, at the age of 18, began apprenticing under his legendary uncle in 1926. The two were very close. As Kawai Kanjirō had only a daughter in his family, the younger Kawai became looked upon as a son. Collaboration between the two artists lasted over 40 years until the elder Kawai’s death in 1966.

Earlier in his career, Kawai worked reverently to preserve the aesthetics that grew from his uncle's vision of mingei, and his pots from this era are sometimes mistaken for those of his master, having that distinctive “Kawai school” flavor. Obeying a principle set by the founding fathers of mingei, Kawai never signed the footring of his works, which may explain this misidentification. See less