{"product_id":"485","title":"Aomori Prefecture Art and Culture Award Recipient, Tsugaru Vidro, Hokuyo Glass, Kaoru Okawa: Frosted Milk-White Glass Stem Cup (Bajohai) with Gold-Tone Foil and Blue Glass Dots, Sold As-Is #485","description":"\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThis piece is a stemmed glass cup by Kaoru Okawa (1940–2008), who worked at Hokuyo Glass, a glassworks in Aomori Prefecture, while also presenting his own works as an independent artist. The side of the stem bears the incised signature “K. OKAWA.” The frosted, milky-white body is decorated with gold-tone foil combined with dots of blue glass. Measuring approximately 6.3 cm in height and 7.5 cm in rim diameter, it sits comfortably in the hand and is well suited for use as a Japanese-style shot glass for savoring aged spirits a little at a time.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eAccording to his reported biography, Mr. Okawa was born in Niigata Prefecture in 1940, studied craft design at Musashino Art University, and joined Hokuyo Glass in Aomori City in 1964. Hokuyo Glass began in 1949 as a maker of glass fishing floats. Building on the free-blowing (chūbuki) technique developed through float making, the company created Tsugaru Vidro in 1977, a line of handmade glass expressing the four seasons and natural landscapes of Aomori. Tsugaru Vidro was also the first product to be designated a traditional craft of Aomori Prefecture. From 1980 onward, Mr. Okawa presented his work in solo exhibitions and glass exhibitions in various parts of Japan. According to the official records of Aomori Prefecture, he received the 11th Aomori Prefecture Art and Culture Award in the crafts category for fiscal year Showa 60 (1985). He is further reported to have won the Grand Prize in Section 1 of the Tohoku Glass Art Exhibition, sponsored by Asahi Glass, in 1990, and the Asahi Glass Prize at the 1st Japan Glass Art Exhibition in 1991. In 2006 he served as an adviser to the company, and he passed away in 2008.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eMr. Okawa’s style is distinguished by the way he incorporated glassmaking techniques from abroad on a foundation of glassblowing. In particular, his tea ceremony utensils, in which he adapted millefiori, the mosaic glass technique handed down on the Venetian island of Murano, in his own distinctive way, are introduced as representative of his work. He also produced many works on the theme of the natural scenery of the Tsugaru region. This piece does not employ millefiori mosaic decoration. It is an example in which the surface is composed of gold-tone foil and blue glass dots, and it demonstrates the breadth of his decorative expression.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThe vessel takes the form of a bajohai, or stem cup, with a rounded cup supported on a stem that widens toward its base. The stem is hollow inside, so that the decoration of the cup can be seen through it when looking up from below. The entire surface has a matte finish with subdued luster, and the milky-white glass softly diffuses the light. The cup is clad in gold-tone foil, which spreads like a haze of fine particles near the rim and becomes larger fragments broken into a fine network of cracks on the lower body, varying in density from place to place. Over this, blue glass dots are arranged in vertical rows radiating from just below the rim down to the top of the stem. The dots are larger toward the upper part of the cup and become smaller and more closely set as they approach the stem, so that when the cup is viewed from below, the blue lines form a pattern spreading outward in all directions from the stem. The dots rise slightly from the surface, and between the rows the body undulates gently. Looking into the interior, the rows of blue dots and the glimmer of the foil show through the frosted wall, and a single blue dot is set at the very center of the bottom. When the cup is filled, the blue and gold pattern emerges through the surface of the liquid, offering an expression different from that seen from the outside.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp dir=\"ltr\"\u003eThe piece bears no date. It is a work bearing the artist’s personal signature, made between 1980, when he began presenting his work in solo and glass exhibitions, and his death in 2008. Documentation on Mr. Okawa is limited even within Japan, and his work has received almost no attention overseas. This stem cup, combining gold-tone foil and blue glass dots on frosted milky-white glass, is a piece of documentary value for understanding his work.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eArtist: \u003c\/strong\u003eKaoru Okawa (大川 薫, 1940–2008)\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eSelected Career Highlights:\u003c\/strong\u003e [1964] Joined Hokuyo Glass, [1980 onward] Exhibited in solo exhibitions and glass exhibitions in various parts of Japan, [1985] 11th Aomori Prefecture Art and Culture Award (Crafts, fiscal year Showa 60), [1990] Grand Prize, Section 1, Tohoku Glass Art Exhibition (sponsored by Asahi Glass), [1991] Asahi Glass Prize, 1st Japan Glass Art Exhibition (sponsored by Asahi Glass), [2006] Adviser to Hokuyo Glass\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDate: \u003c\/strong\u003eBetween 1980 and 2008 (estimated)\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eCondition: \u003c\/strong\u003eSold as-is (one light surface scratch on the interior. It does not extend into any crack or break, and there are no chips on the rim. The scratch can be made out in the photographs at certain angles but is difficult to see with the naked eye. It does not affect the cup’s use as a sake cup)\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIncluded: \u003c\/strong\u003eNone\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMedium: \u003c\/strong\u003eGlass (metal foil decoration)\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e Height approx. 6.3 cm, rim diameter approx. 7.5 cm\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eRemarks: \u003c\/strong\u003eIncised signature “K. OKAWA” on the side of the stem\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli dir=\"ltr\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePlease Note: \u003c\/strong\u003eAll items offered by our shop, even if new and unused, were produced long ago and are therefore listed as pre-owned. Items may show age-related wear or damage; please review and understand this before considering your purchase.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","brand":"Antique Liquor","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":67651890282683,"sku":null,"price":18000.0,"currency_code":"JPY","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0652\/0510\/8923\/files\/IMG_5257_result_0d6f819f-afd1-4f31-91ea-3d7ca1cf7d32.jpg?v=1792252020","url":"https:\/\/antiqueliquor1926.com\/en\/products\/485","provider":"Antique Liquor","version":"1.0","type":"link"}