Azalea in Pot
by Ohara Koson
- Date:
- c. 1928–1930
- Medium:
- Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
- Format:
- Oban
- Dimensions:
- 36.2 × 23.9 cm
- Publisher:
- Watanabe Shozaburo
- Edition:
- Published by Watanabe Shozaburo
- Source:
- Minneapolis Institute of Art
by Ohara Koson
Koson's vast output of ~450 designs spans birds, flowers, fish, insects, and occasional landscapes. While his large production keeps most prints accessible, early Kokkeido-period impressions with muted, elegant Meiji-era coloring are distinctly more sought after than the brighter later Watanabe editions.
An azalea in a ceramic pot — the flower's deep pink or red clusters contained within the domestic object, the whole composition balanced between garden culture and the decorative arts. Koson's potted-flower subjects are among his most intimate compositions, the contained scale of the pot giving the image a quality very different from his expansive bird prints. Produced around 1928–1930 during his most prolific period, the azalea print demonstrates his ability to find beauty in the small and domestic as readily as in the dramatic.
水面の月を掴む猿
c. 1930
Color woodblock print
before 1912
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
1926
Color woodblock print; oban
c. 1928–1930
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Azalea in Pot was created by Ohara Koson (小原古邨) in c. 1928–1930.
Azalea in Pot was published by Watanabe Shozaburo (c. 1928–1930).
Azalea in Pot depicts birds & flowers.
Azalea in Pot measures 36.2 × 23.9 cm (Oban format).
