A Wa-gumi Japanese style woven bamboo basket by Hayakawa Shokosai V enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled Hoo-o Chiku Hanakago (Basket of Phoenix Tail Bamboo). It is 25 cm (10 inches) diameter, 21 cm (8-1/2 inches) tall and in excellent condition.
Hayakawa Shokosai V (1932-2011) learned the art of basketry under his father Hayakawa Shokosai IV. In 1963, he adopted the go or art name, Shoko, and held his first one man show in 1965. Significantly, that exhibition sold out and foreshadowed the artist’s long and continued success. His father died in 1975 and he succeeded to the family title as Shokosai V in 1977. In 2003, he was honored by the Japanese government as Juyo Mukei Bunkazai Hojisha or Preserver of Important Intangible Cultural Properties (commonly referred to as Ningen Kokuho or Living National Treasure).
