Stay Close to Nature

Frank Lloyd Wright

Surimono print

Surimono print

Surimono print

Surimono print

Surimono print

Frank Lloyd Wright: Surimono Collector

Surimono print

Surimono print

Surimono print

Surimono print

Surimono print

An outstanding catalogue of a significant collection ignored by earlier "specialists" who catalogued the Frank Lloyd Wright collection (and labeled the box of surimono simply as "small woodblock prints").

Ms. Mirviss applies her considerable knowledge of Japanese art and her expertise in the peculiarities of the (nearly illegible) script used for the poetry to bring this collection to life. Her unfailing artistic eye makes to this potentially confusing print genre accessible to the Western audience -- and even modern Japanese.

Stunning illustrations of previously unpublished or rarely seen works enhance the richness and pleasure of this catalogue and complement the descriptive text and translations.

Surimono were Japanese woodblock prints privately commissioned for special occasions, an important event, or for circulation among a small group of people. Several features that set surimono apart from commercially produced woodblock prints are their smaller size, complex compositions, the expensive pigments used in their printing (including hand-rubbed metallic or mother-of-pearl pigments), the use of luxurious paper, and the use of poetic inscriptions on almost all prints. 

Like commercial woodblock prints of the Edo period many surimono were designed by ukiyo-e artists such as Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849). 

The surimono published for the first time in this important catalog lay hidden in the Frank Lloyd Wright Archives at Taliesin West, Scottsdale, Arizona until their rediscovery in the mid-1980s.

Frank Lloyd Wright: Obsessed Japanese Print Collector

Frank Lloyd Wright

Frank Lloyd Wright

Frank Lloyd Wright

Some years ago, I bought a tall stack of vintage Frank Lloyd Wright Quarterly magazines for a dollar a throw. I almost deaccessioned them several times earlier, but given my current FLW obsession, I'm glad I still have them to read. 

Speaking of obsessions and collecting, an article in this issue states that FLW bought an estimated 13,000+ Japanese prints (not to mention the additional Asian Art screens, sculptures, ceramics, fabrics, etc.) during his lifetime. He would sell them during the times when money was tight and advised his wife to do the same, after he died. I don't feel nearly so sheepish about my comic book collecting years now...

"...His personal collection was a mixed bag, ranging from the marvelous to the spurious..."

Katsuyo Aoki: Ornate Ceramic Skull Sculptures

Artist Katsuyo Aoki primarily uses ceramics to create her sculptural work.  

However, the ceramic is more than simply a material she uses to build the work.  The clean white color resembles old sun bleached bones, perfect for the pieces’ skull like shapes. 

Aoki also relies on the the historical language and connotations of the material.  The extremely ornate ceramic is reminiscent of keepsakes, knick-knacks, and home furnishings of a well decorated home.  

These light weight associations are juxtaposed against the existential heaviness of the object’s shape: a human skull. 

 In her artist's statement Aoki relates the contrasting feelings she intends her work to inspire: 

“Their existence in the present age makes us feel many things; adoration, some sort of romantic emotions, a sense of unfruitfulness and languor from their excessiveness and vulgarity.  And on the other hand, they make us feel tranquility and awe that can almost be described as religious, as well as an image as an object of worship.” 

In her own words:

“Currently, I use ceramics as my material in my method of expression, incorporating various decorative styles, patterns, and symbolic forms as my principal axis in creating my works.  

The decorative styles and forms I allude to and incorporate in my works each contain a story based on historical backgrounds and ideas, myths, and allegories. Their existence in the present age makes us feel many things --  adoration, some sort of romantic emotions, a sense of unfruitfulness and languor from their excessiveness and vulgarity. And on the other hand, they make us feel tranquility and awe that can almost be described as religious, as well as an image as an object of worship. By citing such images, I feel I am able to express an atmosphere that is a part of the complex world in this age. 

In fact, the several decorative styles and forms I cite simultaneously hold divine and vulgar meaning in the present age, having an irrational quality that contradict each other, which I feel express an important aspect in the contemporary age in which we live.  

Also, the technique of ceramics has a tradition that has been a part of the history of decoration over a long time, and I feel the delicateness and fragile tension of the substantial material well express my concept.”