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unsigned wood netsuke
18th century
islander
height 11.9 cm
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wearing a short sarong skirt, the islander lifts his hands to his head as he turns to one side, smiling broadly, his long hair is swept backwards and his face has the prominent eyes and broad nose of a foreigner, his bony ribs are well delineated and his slack stomach bulges over his skirt, the dark wood is well worn with a deep patina
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The southern islanders appeared very primitive to the Japanese, who referred to them as Nambanjin (wild people of the South). By carving the netsuke of the subject in dark wood, the artist was also able to portray the blackness of his skin color.
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Published:
Expressions of Style: Netsuke as Art, Scholten Japanese Art, New York, August 2001, no. 5
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$18,500
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