<b>CLOUDINESS</b>Tobari Kogan1917<b>SOLD</b></em>

Details

Kogan Tobari is most known for his early woodblock prints produced in the Sosaku Hanga paradigm of printmaking. In this creative milieu, Tobari also became interested in sculpture through his association with the Japanese sculptor Rokuzan Ogiwara (1879-1910), a pioneer in Western-style bronze sculpture in Japan. Ogiwara studied previously with Auguste Rodin (1840-1917) while he was in Paris. Through his association with Ogiwara, Toban naturally became interested in bronze sculpture, with Rodin and Ogiwara being his two greatest influences. As such, Kogan sought out naturalistic postures, rejecting idealism or the aesthetics of elegance. 

In this sculpture, Kogan presents a kneeling female nude with her head slightly arched back. The woman’s arms are up while her hands run through her hair. Kogan’s work clearly depicts a bather washing her hair. The unevenness of the base suggests a naturalistic landscape. Though the woman is shown in a traditional motif, her posture and voluptuous form demonstrate Kogan’s insistence on realism.  

Connoisseur's Note

This sculpture is an exceedingly rare work by Kogan. The work is listed and illustrated in the Kogan catalogue raisonne produced by the Aichi Prefectural Museum of Art in 1994.