Seibo Kitamura - Flowerbed Maintenance - Bronze Circa 1920 #399

This gardener seems half-asleep, her gaze lost, her kimono ill-fitting. She holds a watering jug. This sculpture is related to a companion piece held at the Kitamura Seibō Sculpture Garden (Tokyo), the artist's museum (see photo at the end of the slideshow). The museum presents this series under the title "Maintenance of the Flowerbed"—a series recognizable, among other things, by the small flowers that adorn the edge of the base. The museum's example depicts our gardener, approachable and focused, holding a hoe. These works capture a fleeting moment with a benevolent gaze, contrasting sharply with the muscular male figures the artist produced. His models were drawn from his circle. Bronze with a brown patina - 8 kg - good condition (wear at the bottom of the apron and a small scratch). Signed SEYBO (signature used by the artist before the Second World War). --- The artist: Born in Nagasaki. He entered Kyoto City University of Arts in 1903, graduating in 1907 and 1912. After completing his military service in 1915, he began sculpting full-time and was appointed professor at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts in 1921. He became a member of the Japanese Academy of Arts in 1925. His Taisho period (1912-1926) saw his rise to prominence, with numerous awards and official commissions. His style is powerful, with a strong emphasis on the human body. He was heavily influenced by Rodin. In 1931, he decorated the central hall of the National Diet. After 1945, he retired from public life and created a series of monumental sculptures depicting demons and the damned. The most famous of these is the 10-meter-high statue in Nagasaki Peace Park (1958). The emperor himself travelled to visit him. His style became exacerbated, inspired by medieval Buddhist art; critics spoke of a "skeletal beauty".