Cleveland Museum of Art

Lid for a Water Container with Shell and Seaweed

Seifū Yohei IVLinkedCulture matchlcp-8011e1c8592a

Date

1914–46

Medium

lacquered wood

Culture

Japan, Meiji period (1868–1912) or Taishō period (1912–26)

Department

Japanese Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

Object ID

448348

Yohei IV chose an aquatic theme for this mizusashi . He applied clay to the surface and molded the shape of a large conch on one side and, on the other, a clam and a scallop. The finer details he incised into the surface of his low-relief shapes. He then painted seaweed as though it were coming out from behind the sea creatures, and he further set off the animals using a masking technique with a gradated blue surround. Finally, he applied a translucent blue glaze, identified on the box as mizusai , over the entire body of the vessel. The resulting effect is that one imagines having descended through the water to the ocean floor. A mizusashi , water container, is an essential utensil for a tea ceremony.

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