Shrine Cabinet in the shape of a Mountain Monk’s Backpack (Oi)

Iizuka Hōsai II Japanese

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 231

Iizuka Hōsai II often created bamboo works in the shape of objects that would traditionally have been made in other media. Meant to be used as a portable shrine, this cabinet takes the form of an oi, the characteristic backpack of mountain monks and pilgrims. Hōsai substituted tightly plaited bamboo for the basic structure and the central bottle-shaped slat, which holds the cabinet doors in place, and he created the other sections in various plaiting patterns. When open, the doors display depictions of Hanshan and Shide, semilegendary eccentric Chan Buddhist monks active in the eighth century at Guoqingsi, a temple on China’s sacred Mount Tiantai.

Shrine Cabinet in the shape of a Mountain Monk’s Backpack (Oi), Iizuka Hōsai II (Japanese, 1872–1934), Timber bamboo and dwarf bamboo, lacquer, Japan

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Shrine Cabinet in the shape of a Mountain Monk’s Backpack (Oi), Iizuka Hōsai II (Japanese, 1872–1934), Timber bamboo and dwarf bamboo, lacquer, Japan
Shrine Cabinet in the shape of a Mountain Monk’s Backpack (Oi), Iizuka Hōsai II (Japanese, 1872–1934), Timber bamboo and dwarf bamboo, lacquer, Japan
Shrine Cabinet in the shape of a Mountain Monk’s Backpack (Oi), Iizuka Hōsai II (Japanese, 1872–1934), Timber bamboo and dwarf bamboo, lacquer, Japan
Shrine Cabinet in the shape of a Mountain Monk’s Backpack (Oi), Iizuka Hōsai II (Japanese, 1872–1934), Timber bamboo and dwarf bamboo, lacquer, Japan
Shrine Cabinet in the shape of a Mountain Monk’s Backpack (Oi), Iizuka Hōsai II (Japanese, 1872–1934), Timber bamboo and dwarf bamboo, lacquer, Japan
Shrine Cabinet in the shape of a Mountain Monk’s Backpack (Oi), Iizuka Hōsai II (Japanese, 1872–1934), Timber bamboo and dwarf bamboo, lacquer, Japan

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