The
Sarumawashi, the Monkey Trainer is a common character in Japanese rural life.
Part medicine man, part magician and part showman, the surumawashi travels with
his monkey and faithful dog, from city to city and town to town, selling herbal
medicine, directing monkey and dog in playful tales that delight children and
adults. But everything in life does not always follow form or plan.
In this delightful, Mejii era ivory okimono the monkey trainer's world
has turned amusingly chaotic. The monkey gambits with the trainer, pulling him
this way and that as the excited puppy (who is shown with highly realistic patched
and textured fur) fervently leaps upon his master's leg, nearly knocking him over.
The artist renders this highly animated mise-en scene in super realism. The monkey's
body is slightly torques. The muscles and backbone are rendered with a precise
anatomical realism and his expression is highly rambunctious. The saraumawashi
on the other hand is in comic anguish, as his hair is being nearly pulled off
by his simian tormentor. The trainer's face is sculpted with visceral realism
and reads well from multiple angles. With his eyes rolled back, his lips pulled
back against the teeth and his unusually angled cheekbones, the artist depicts
the trainer as a unique character, perhaps inspired from real life. Though a small
chip to his left toes, and the puppy is carved separately. The minor imperfection
diminish little of the magic in this small and compact okimono. (SD)
