Accession Number
1991/2.26.1-2

Title
Square Box with Lid

Artist(s)
Kawai Kanjirô

Object Creation Date
1929-1942

Medium & Support
stoneware with blue and copper underglaze painting

Dimensions
1 in x 2 11/16 in x 2 5/8 in (2.54 cm x 6.83 cm x 6.67 cm)

Credit Line
Gift of Willard A. and Marybelle Bouchard Hanna

Label copy
In 1929, Kawai Kanjirô exhibited ceramics that embodied his idea of the Mingei aesthetic—a testimony to his increasingly close relationships with Yanagi Sôetsu (1889–1961) and Hamada Shôji (1894–1978), two important figures in the Mingei movement. This work was dramatically different from his earlier production, which emphasized an elegance and technical perfection modeled on Chinese porcelain and stoneware traditions. Kawai would remain committed to the Mingei aesthetic, encapsulated in the phrase “utility is beautiful,” throughout his long and prolific career.
During the 1930s and 1940s, Kawai often produced containers with lids for the storage of small objects like incense. Though diminutive, they retain the strong forms and sense of color that he acquired from his early study of Chinese ceramics.
(Turning Point exhibition, Spring 2010)

Subject matter
square box with lid

Physical Description
Square shaped stoneware box with lid. Lid and upper portion of box base decorated with blue and copper underglaze painting.

Primary Object Classification
Ceramic

Primary Object Type
box

Additional Object Classification(s)
Decorative Arts

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
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Keywords
boxes (containers)
ceramic ware (visual works)
lids (covers)