Bundle
2019
Tanaka Yu, a young woman artist based in Kyoto, recently created a series of clay sculptures in the shape of furoshiki (knotted wrapping cloth). The folds and shape suggest that an object is wrapped inside, provoking us to imagine what might be kept under wraps. The bright yellow color refers to the yellow cloth often used to wrap a ceramic vessel in its storage box. This distinctive color is a result of multiple coats of pigment, which, unlike traditional ceramic glaze, is a painting pigment. Lying deeper in Tanaka Yu’s artistic intention is her questioning of ceramic vessels’ functionality and her creation of forms encapsulating both space and time.
Matte-glazed stoneware
24 3/8 x 16 1/2 x 16 1/2 in. (61.9 x 41.9 x 41.9 cm)
Gift of Gordon Brodfuehrer in honor of the Monsen family
2020.21.3
Provenance: The artist; [Joan B Mirviss LTD, New York]; purchased from gallery by Gordon Brodfuehrer, San Diego, California, 2020; to Seattle Art Museum, Seattle, Washington, 2020
Photo: Kani Hazuki
