A baby rests in its basket – sheltered, still, barely visible. The Ejiko form, originally inspired by the wooden carrying baskets in which children of the Tōhoku region were cradled during fieldwork, is here reduced to its emotional essence: protection, warmth, and a sense of being held. This Kokeshi variant has long been regarded as an expression of maternal care – and Yusuke Sato carries that tradition forward with unusual lightness. He works at Kijidokoro Sato, a workshop with over 120 years of history at the heart of the Yajiro region.
The basket is entirely wrapped in Rokuro-Moyo – no motif, no open ground. Yellow, green, and red at the rim; broad red with fine violet lines at the centre; green and deep violet towards the base. The bands sit close and even, each colour separated by narrow pale lines. Here, the lathe alone does the speaking. The inside of the opening is finished in violet as well. Nestled inside sits the Kokeshi figure: a small head, closed eyes in the Fuse-me style, a delicate smile, rosy cheeks. Red plum blossoms along the sides – fine brushwork on the smallest of canvases.
Viewed from above, what remains hidden from the front becomes visible: the characteristic Rokuro-Moyo pattern on the crown – concentric circles, precisely applied. A hallmark of the Yajiro tradition.
Ejiko-Kokeshi in the Yajiro tradition
Basket: all-over Rokuro-Moyo bands in red, yellow, green, and violet
Yusuke Sato works in the Yajiro tradition at the long-established Kijidokoro Sato family workshop. His gradient Kokeshi introduce a distinctive idea into this inherited visual language, characterised by finely layered colours that flow gently from one tone into another.
