Edo period, 18th century
Kenzan ware, underglaze and overglaze decoration
Height, 21.9cm; width, 21.9cm; depth, 3.0cm
White slip has been applied to the entire exterior surface of this plate and peony blossoms painted on top of the white slip in underglaze iron. Finally, a transparent glaze was applied overall. The white slip was brushed on, and close inspection reveals traces of the brush strokes. The seal that accompanies the inscription on the painting was printed with red overglaze using a paper stencil. The peony painting is signed "Korin ga," accompanied by the statement "Kenzan shinsei sho," indicating a ceramic work created by Kenzan and decorated by Korin, his older brother.
In the past, the dominant scholarly view held that such joint works by the 2 brothers were created in the early Kenzan ware period, on the basis of the following statement in "Toji Seiho (Sano Densho)" which is said to have been written by Kenzan: "At first, all of the paintings were painted by Korin ... ." However, a comparison with Korin's kao, or written seal, found on other documents, such as letters, indicates that the majority of the plates created jointly by the brothers should be dated to around the end of the Narutaki period, and at present this is the dominant scholarly opinion. YO
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