1851-1918
male
kutani porcelain
Matsumoto Sahei was a Kutani ware potter who was the first son of Matsuya Kikusaburo of Rendaiji kiln. He inherited the family business in 1868.
He mainly worked in aka-e, which was extremely rare at the time, and ao-te, as well as detailed colored paintings once western paints began circulating, making Sahei one of the leading figures of “Japan Kutani.” In 1876, he received the artist name Shoundo from the nanga painter Tokuda Kansho, and started using this title the following year. By 1887, he had established factories in six towns and villages but by 1891, all of them had closed, and business completely shut down in 1903. He passed on his artist name to Sakichi, his son-in-law, and began working under the name Sahei from 1893, and continued creating pottery under this name. From 1903, he specialized in porcelain painting under Kinyodo Taniguchi Kichijiro.
Moreover, Tokuda Yasokichi the First has been to Shoundo’s studio to train as a pottery painter.
