Zen Calligraphy "Dream"

Name: Zen Calligraphy "Dream"
Brand: Bokuo Seki
SKU: 5957
Price: 360.00 EUR
Availability: OutOfStock

Kakemono, unique work, with box, 127 x 55 cm

Product number: 5957

Sold – no longer available

This piece was handmade by Bokuo Seki and was a one-of-a-kind work. It cannot be reordered and will never exist in this form again. The page stays online as part of our archive.

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Details about the sold piece

Height 127 cm
Width 55 cm
Item Type Kakemono
Jikusaki Wood
Material Honshi Paper
Period of Creation Shôwa (1926–1989)
Technique Hand-Painted
Unique Work Yes
Wooden Box Yes

Signature / Stamp:

Bokuo Seki

Sold

No longer available

Description

A single, expansively curved character fills the entire picture surface: 夢 (Yume), "dream" – a term often understood in Zen Buddhism as a symbol for the impermanence and illusory nature of the world.

The calligraphy is the work of Bokuo Seki (1903–1991), a Zen monk whose powerful, almost dance-like brushstroke lends the character a remarkable dynamism. The dry, frayed passages within the stroke bear witness to the speed and determination with which the work was created.

The kakemono is delivered including a wooden box and is an expressive example of the close connection between calligraphy, philosophy, and lived Zen practice.

Frequently asked

I am interested in this work. Do you have more of them in stock?

No – as a one-of-a-kind piece it exists in a single example only.

Can you source a similar work?

We would be glad to look for one. Get in touch with the details of the object you are looking for and we will see what we can do.

Why does the date of creation sometimes not match the artist's dates

Because the two pieces of information speak about different things: the period designation describes the object – support, colors, condition – while the signature reflects which name appears on the painting. In most cases there is no attempt at deception behind this, but rather Japanese painting training: copying from workshop models was the curriculum for centuries, an utsushi is regarded as a bow to the teacher, workshops signed with the master's name, and artist names were passed down within a school. Such a hanging scroll is therefore not a forgery, but a hand-painted one-of-a-kind that continues the formal language of its school – just not the work of the famous name, and priced accordingly. We explain this in detail in the guide Why does a kakemono often bear the signature of an artist long deceased?.

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