A Japanese Meiji Period circular Satsuma Koro signed Yabu Meizan

Four Seasons

In Japan the changing of the seasons marked by different plants and flowers is very significant, viewing parties and festivals are popular the most well know of these being the cherry blossom festival in the spring, less well known is the celebration of the changing acer leaves (Japanese maple) in the Autumn. Vases depicting two or four seasons would be rotated as the seasons changed.

Satsuma

Satsuma ware is a type of earthenware pottery originating from the Satsuma province in Southern Kyūshū, Japan’s third largest island. The first kilns were established here is the 16^th century by Korean potters kidnapped by the Japanese for their extraordinary skills, prior to this there was no ceramic industry in Satsuma.

The first presentation of Japanese arts to the West was in 1867, Satsuma was one of the star attractions, it was this that established the satsuma aesthetic we are most familiar with today. This export style reflects the foreign tastes of the time, popular designs featured millefleur (million flower), and complex filled in patterns. Many pieces featured panels depicting typical Japanese scenes to appeal to the west such as pagodas, cherry blossom, birds and flowers and beautiful ladies and noble men in traditional dress. The height of popularity for Satsuma was the Meiji Period and many of the most beautiful and artistically accomplished works were made during this time.

Yabu Meizan

Yabu Meizan is widely seen as one of the greatest Satsuma artists, he is certainly the most popular with his works fetching very high prices at auction, especially his miniatures.  He trained in Tokyo and Awaji before setting up his own studio in Osaka in 1880, he retired in 1926.