Yufu Shohaku: New Works

SANTA FE, NM – TAI Modern is pleased to present an exhibition of new works by master Japanese bamboo artist Yufu Shohaku. This exhibition features recent baskets that demonstrate the artist’s continued exploration of his signature “dragon pattern” technique and his deep engagement with Japanese mythology and natural forms.

Now in his eighties, Yufu remains one of bamboo art’s most distinctive and commanding voices. He is recognized for his bold, rough-plaited baskets created from bamboo branches, roots, and large chunks of half-split bamboo. His works are characterized by their vigorous energy, varied surfaces, and robust sculptural presence.

Yufu begins each piece with freshly cut madake bamboo, splitting and slicing the culm with a simple handheld knife to achieve strips of precise dimensions. He is among the few remaining bamboo artists who can work comfortably with bamboo strips over seven feet in length. Working largely without measurements or preliminary drawings, Yufu relies on decades of experience and an internalized sense of form. He builds his baskets through hexagonal plaiting, then adds layers of random-weave bamboo, incorporating spiraling bamboo ropes, loops of bundled bamboo strips, and his distinctive dragon pattern elements to create rich texture and visual movement.

“When I make flower baskets, I always consider the size and balance of the baskets, as well as the type of flowers to be arranged in them,” Yufu explains. “For me, baskets and flowers are inseparable, and I get my inspiration from natural forms such as the earth and cliffs. I try to give my works an organic look, as if they are a part of nature.”

Yufu was born into a basket-making family in Beppu, Oita Prefecture, and trained under his father, Chikuryu. Through this lineage, he is considered the last successor of the Matsuyama Literati-style basket tradition, which dates to 1896. His innovation lies in dramatically scaling up traditional forms and developing his original dragon pattern technique, inspired by a transformative encounter with a statue of Buddhist guardian deity Fudo Myoo at a mountain monastery.

Throughout his distinguished career, Yufu has been recognized as an important traditional craft arts skill holder by Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare. He served as head of the Beppu Bamboo Craftsmen’s Association from 2003 to 2012 and has taught hundreds of students. His work draws deeply from Japanese religious imagery and mythology, resulting in baskets that are both rooted in tradition and yet somehow timeless.