Prior to the early nineteenth century, the production of cloisonné in Japan was limited to small objects with relatively flat surfaces. Kaji Tsunekichi (1803–1883) was a former samurai living in Nagoya who, it is said, turned to metalworking as a means of supplementing his government stipend. Supposedly in possession of a Chinese cloisonné object that he deconstructed and studied, Kaji’s experiments led to the production of a small dish in 1838. He continued honing his skills and was able to fabricate cups, a plate, and other small three-dimensional items. Kaji began taking on students in the mid-1850s, laying the groundwork for a renaissance in the field of Japanese cloisonné enamel production.
Among the most accomplished cloisonné masters of the Meiji period (1868−1912) was Namikawa Yasuyuki (1845−1927) of Kyoto, the maker of this pair of vases. Yasuyuki’s earliest works date to the 1870s. He quickly developed his skills and by 1875 was exhibiting at both domestic and international exhibitions. In 1896, Yasuyuki was appointed Imperial Court Artist (Teishitsu Gigei’in) to the court of Emperor Meiji.
Although cloisonné had developed sufficiently to allow enameling of three-dimensional works, surface designs were still limited by the necessity of using wires to hold the enamels in place. Designs were drawn onto the form, then very fine wires were placed over the line drawing and affixed to the metal substrate. The wires created cells or partitions, called cloisons in French. The cells were filled with enamel paste, the wires preventing the enamels from running when fired (M.91.251.3a-f).
This pair of vases feature complex, densely detailed decorations, including borders and backgrounds that incorporate repeating patterns of minute geometric and floral elements. Wires separate the colors and delineate the design of birds, flowers, insects, and scrolling vines and leaves. As compared to later works that make use of new techniques, here the blossoms and butterflies are flat and simplified shapes. Each petal is perfectly formed, identical in size and shape, and symmetrical.
The primary market for Japanese Meiji-period cloisonné work was Western visitors to Japan, and those who encountered Japanese art at the international expositions held in Europe and the United States in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Catering to the tastes and needs of their foreign clientele, cloisonné studios produced pairs of objects to accommodate the Western practice of creating symmetrical arrangements in their homes.
2025