Couple
Artist
Akio Takamori
(Japanese, 1950 - 2017)
Date1980
MediumSalt-glazed stoneware
DimensionsOverall: 12 3/4 × 20 × 6 inches (32.39 × 50.8 × 15.24 cm)
Credit LineGift of Gertrude Ferguson from the collection of Ken Ferguson
Object number2012.44.3
SignedOn the back in red glaze “Akio”
On View
Not on viewCollections
DescriptionThe front face of the ceramic vessel is in the form of a reclining female nude figure with legs bent. The female figure's body is glazed in white and peach with heavy red lines outlining the body and creating the facial features. The interior back wall is a leering satyr cradling the recumbent female nude. He is painted black with incised while lines to delineate his face and body; his black hands wrap around the white of the nude’s body. On the reverse of the envelope is the back of the satyr with an erect phallus. Again the painting has incised lines to outline the form of the figure. The signature “Akio” is painted in red glaze with a flourish emanating from the phallus.Gallery LabelAkio Takamori references historical texts and images as sources for his ceramic works. The provocative sculpture Couple was inspired by an erotic woodblock print by the Japanese master, Kitagawa Utamaro. Takamori adapted the Japanese subject to the ancient Greek and Roman world. The artist uses the ceramic surface, line and color to create depth, movement and contact between the intertwined leering satyr and the voluptuous nude.
Copyright© Estate of Akio Takamori
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