For the Japanese, the sea has been a vital source of food, folklore, and creative inspiration since ancient times. Sea creatures and activities have served as motifs in all forms of Japanese art, including netsuke, where fish, octopus, crabs, fishermen, and diving girls (ama) abound. These female divers collect pearls, shells, seaweed, and the like from the depths of the ocean, and the elements of their portrayal in netsuke have remained consistent through centuries. Usually carved of ivory, ama have long, straight, black hair, wear a skirt, and hold a shell or sickle-shaped tool in one hand. They may be depicted alone, paired with a large shell, or with an octopus, alluding to the creature’s amorous designs on these young women. Here, its tentacles grasp the pearl diver from all directions. The artist, Genryōsai Minkoku II, was adept at carving in a variety of materials combined in a single work, a popular practice in nineteenth-century netsuke production. In this case, the eyes of the octopus are inlaid with crystal, and the diver’s smooth glossy hair is rendered using a shaped and incised inlay of lacquer.
2024