Figure Japanese Bodhidharma (Daruma) Figure Made of Bizen Ware

With sternly drawn brows and a piercing gaze, this Bodhidharma figure embodies the stern, uncompromising side of the legendary Zen patriarch. The furrows carved deep into the forehead and the tightly pressed lips leave no doubt as to the resolve for which the founder of Chan, or Zen, Buddhism is known in tradition.

The arms crossed before the chest and the robe worked out in a few clear lines lend the standing figure a compact, self-contained silhouette. The surface of the Bizen ware shifts between warm reddish brown and darker, almost black-appearing shades, as are typical for the traditional wood-fired kiln of this region, lending the figure an earthy, immediate presence.

As a handcrafted one-of-a-kind piece from the Shôwa period, this Bodhidharma figure exemplifies the Bizen-yaki tradition, in which the natural character of the fired clay itself becomes the most important means of expression. With its powerful facial expression and its clear, reduced formal language, it is an impressive collector's piece for lovers of Japanese ceramic art.