Sosaku Kokeshi Masao Watanabe

Dombury no gato by Masao Watanabe .impressive size in reality the kimono has leaves motives which look applied on the surface Maso Watanabe is considered one of Japan's greatest Sosaku kokeshi artists. Born in Fukushima, Watanabe-san studied under the traditional master Yajirou Sato, Tatsuo, of Miyagi Prefecture. Arguably the most popular and prolific of the 20th-century Sosaku kokeshi artists, he began his craft in the early 1950s. His most famous kokeshi themes are innocence (Mushin), and his doll Chigo Zakura (Cherry Blossom Child) won the Minister's Prize and was presented to the Beatles in 1965, after their concert in Japan with Sir Joseph Lockwood, president of EMI Record Distributors, England. From 1963 to 1981, he won numerous awards at international kokeshi competitions (Prime Minister's Prize for the works "Chigozskura" in 1963 and "Shojo" in 1981), as well as numerous awards from the Association of Modern Kokeshi Artists and JETRO. He exhibited twice in Japan and was exempted from the All-Japan Kokeshi Competition examination. He was a member of the Japan Kokeshi Crafts Association. His works are on permanent display at the Toy Museum in Nuremberg, Germany.