Yuki Hayama
Vase: Fish and Aquatic Plants
Ceramic
H14 3/4 x W15 3/8 in
H37.3 x W39.1 cm
H37.3 x W39.1 cm
C21980
Copyright The Artist
Further images
Chinese nobles and literati, who were driven from their homes when the Mongols swept across the Eurasian continent, traveled down the Yangtze River in search of a safe haven, eventually settling in the mild climate of Jiangnan, where they developed new forms of beauty and art. This design of fish and seaweed is a motif that was first developed by the court painters of the Southern Song dynasty; fish represent wealth and seaweed symbolizes a safe home. Applying the motif using zaffer, Hayama elegantly recreates this one-thousand-year-old prayer for peace in the modern age.
