Item Description Kusaba Masato 草場正人 Kusaba Masato (1924–) — Large Sometsuke (Blue and White) Vase with Wheat Motif — Signed, with Original Tomobako and Tōrekisho — Arita / Hizen Ware, Shōwa Period A striking and elegant large sometsuke (染付, blue-and-white) flower vase by the celebrated Arita-based ceramic artist Kusaba Masato (草場正人, born 1924), an exhibiting member of the Nitten (Japan Fine Arts Exhibition), the Saga Prefecture Ceramics Association, and the Nihon Shinkōgei Sakka Renmei (Japan New Crafts Artists Federation). The piece is in unused, mint condition, accompanied by its original signed paulownia wood box (tomobako) and the artist's printed biographical document (tōrekisho), making it a complete and highly desirable example of the artist's work. The vase takes the form of a tall, slightly flared cylindrical vessel with a beautifully irregular, undulating rim featuring three small notched "spouts" — a sophisticated reference to ancient Japanese mizusashi (water containers) and lipped ritual vessels. Two small lug handles (mimi) sit just below the rim, echoing the form of classical Japanese storage jars. The decoration is an exquisitely controlled study in sometsuke (underglaze cobalt blue on white porcelain), depicting a quiet landscape of wheat (mugi) — sheaves of ripe wheat heads heavy with grain rise from the upper register, while wind-blown wheat grasses sweep across the lower register, rendered with the calligraphic spontaneity of a sumi-e ink painting. A horizontal band of pale wash blue evokes a distant horizon, dividing the composition between earth and sky. The artist has freely brushed the wheat in deep indigo strokes, with subtle gradations from saturated cobalt to dilute wash, capturing both the structural rhythm of the wheat ears and the lyrical sway of the grasses in the breeze. The upper rim and the foot are accented with a deliberately rough, almost volcanic dark glaze, providing a powerful textural contrast to the refined porcelain body — a hallmark of Kusaba's mature aesthetic, which combines the technical perfection of the Arita porcelain tradition with the rustic vigour of mingei and modern studio pottery. The base is signed in underglaze blue with the artist's calligraphic mark. The pristine white porcelain interior is glazed in soft pale blue, and the throwing rings of the potter's wheel remain clearly visible inside and around the base, attesting to the entirely hand-thrown construction. The accompanying tomobako (paulownia wood box) is inscribed in sumi ink by the artist as "Sometsuke Hanaike" (染付花瓶, "Blue-and-white Flower Vase"), and bears the inscription "Arita zaijū Nitten tōgei sakka, Kusaba Masato saku" (有田在住 日展陶芸作家 草場正人作 / "Made by Kusaba Masato, Arita-resident Nitten ceramic artist") along with the artist's calligraphic signature and a red seal. The included printed tōrekisho (biographical document) sets out the artist's training under three towering figures of post-war Arita porcelain — Okugawa Chū'emon (奥川忠右衛門), Mizumachi Wasaburō (水町和三郎), and Nakazato Tarōemon (中里太郎右衛門) — followed by a long string of distinctions across more than four decades of exhibition. A wonderfully poetic and technically masterful piece of late Shōwa Arita porcelain, ideal for collectors of Japanese studio ceramics, ikebana practitioners, and admirers of contemporary sometsuke at the highest level. Size Height: 24.5 cm Outer diameter (rim): 14.1 cm Weight 1,378 g Condition Mint, unused condition. No chips, cracks, repairs, or staining. The deliberately roughened dark glaze around the rim and base, the two notched "spouts" in the rim, and the textural irregularities throughout are intentional artistic features, not damage. Accompanied by the original signed paulownia wood box (tomobako) and the printed biographical document (tōrekisho); the box and document show light age-toning consistent with storage since the Shōwa period. Artist Profile Kusaba Masato 草場正人 Kusaba Masato (artist name: Seisen 正染, born 1924) is a celebrated Japanese ceramic artist based in Arita (Saga Prefecture), the historic heartland of Japanese porcelain production. Born in Arita in Taishō 13 (1924), he turned to ceramics after demobilisation at the end of the Second World War and trained under three towering figures of post-war Arita porcelain: Okugawa Chū'emon (奥川忠右衛門), Mizumachi Wasaburō (水町和三郎), and Nakazato Tarōemon (中里太郎右衛門, of the celebrated Karatsu Nakazato lineage). Kusaba has exhibited continuously at the most prestigious national and regional exhibitions for over four decades. He was selected twenty times for the Nitten (Japan Fine Arts Exhibition) between Shōwa 33 and 62 (1958–1987), receiving honourable mentions; he was elevated to Nitten kaiyū (associate member status) in Shōwa 51 (1976). He showed continuously at the Saga Prefectural Art Exhibition from Shōwa 27 to 57 (1952–1982), receiving the Minister of Education Award, the Governor's Award, the Asahi Shimbun Prize, the Mainichi Shimbun Prize, the Sankei Shimbun Prize, the Nihon Keizai Shimbun Prize, and the Mayor's Prize, among others. He received twelve consecutive prizes at the Arita Ceramics Quality Exhibition (Shōwa 27–40 / 1952–1965), and was twice awarded second and third place at the Kyūshū-Yamaguchi Ceramics Exhibition. He was inducted as a member of the Saga Art Association in Shōwa 35 (1960), and serves as a judge of the Japan New Crafts Exhibition (Shōwa 63 / 1988). His artistic credo, as recorded on the included tōrekisho, expresses his wish "to feel the joy and vigour of things born from the struggle between clay and flame, to live in the midst of finite nature with the same pulse as the wild grasses, and to discover, through the world of crafts, a beauty proper to myself as a modern human being." NOTICE: The photos may show flowers, plants, pedestals, etc. as examples of decorations and interior design for illustrative purposes, but please note that these are not included in the product. The lot will be carefully packaged and sent by DHL, FedEx or Japan Post depending on the situation. 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