Sosaku Kokeshi, 'Portrait of Chieko' by Takayama Kotaro, Japan.

Special creative kokeshi with a poem made by Takayama Kotaro.

Dimensions: height 21 cm, diameter 4 cm. With a partially visible hanko of the artist.

This kokeshi depicts the spirit of a poem by the Japanese poet and sculptor, Kotaro Takamura. He is known for his sculptural works but also famous for his poems, especially for his 1941 collection "Chiekosho" or "Chieko's Sky" in English. The translated title, "Chieko's Sky", comes from one of the poems, "Childlike story", where Chieko longs for the sky of her childhood. As the inscription on the Kokeshi doll reads, he is telling his wife Chieko that the mountain over the horizon is Mt. Adatara and the shining water is the river Abukuma of her hometown, Fukushima Prefecture. Chieko was diagnosed with Schizophrenia and never left the hospital until her death. Kotaro depicted and described her hometown through his poem. Along with his total dedication to his wife, Kotaro's book of poems is still widely admired and read today.