A Very Rare & Large Japanese Carp Painting on Silk by Soseki Komori. 1920s.

Assembled size 18 1/2 x 65 ins. (47 x 165.1 cms) Very little is known of Soseki Komori. He designed a series of high quality prints in the 1920s and 30s which have become desirable to collectors. The present item consists of two sliding cupboard doors with a design of carp painted on silk. Each panel has a copper recessed finger plate (hikitei). We bought it in Kyoto several years ago and were told by the vendor that it had been removed from a demolished traditional-style house in Kyoto. The carp are beautifully realised on a background of gold flecked silk with a dusting of either silver powder or crushed mica which suggests the reflections and translucency of the water. There is also gold pigment on the carp.

The panels are in very good condition. There is a small repair just above the hikitei on the right hand panel where someone has put their finger through the silk and paper. The repair has been made from the reverse of the panel where a small section of the backing has been lifted and replaced once the repair was effected. The sliding fittings for the doors have been removed leaving a good surface for framing. On the join there is a vertical area which is slightly darker than its surroundings. a consequence of its use as cupboard doors where one panel would have overlapped the other. Framing would be a simple matter.

The item could be considered unique and was clearly commissioned for a specific location. As far as we are aware it is the only recorded painting by this artist who was clearly a very fine artist. It is possible that, as was common with Japanese artists, he changed his name at some point in his career.

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