Carved wood salmon okimono, Shuho Nakahara, Japan, c. 1935.
£1,800.00
A fine Japanese okimono of a salmon, Shuho Nakahara, Hokkaido, c. 1935, Showa Period. Carved in the Senpyo-bori style, the salmon is a finely rendered study, with naturalistic colouring to accentuate the detail.
Signed Shuho Nakahara to the reverse.
Length – 56 cm, 22”.
Shuho Nakahara 1909-1995, was a master craftsman in the Senpyo-bori style of carving, centered in Kuriyama Town, Hokkaido. The style concentrates on anatomical precision, with Kazuya Honda being the founder of the school.
Nakahara was apprenticed to the master, and became a renowned exponent of the style. He was respected for the precise detail, of his work, especially of salmon, where the exact number of scales can be seen. Collectors and academics are particularly impressed by his ability to capture the look of captured, and desiccated fish, as can be seen in the rendering of the facial expression.
Examples of his work are regarded as cultural relics of Hokkaido.
