Otafuku

Otafuku: Japan’s Smiling Muse

In shops, shrines, homes and gardens throughout Japan, at noisy festivals and in the most serene teahouses, you are likely to encounter the plump, smiling image of Otafuku-a mythic figure from Japan’s distant past.

With her twinkling eyes and rosy lips, she appears in countless incarnations: on banners, cups and bowls, and in craft, furniture, painting and sculpture. Who is this warm, wonderful lady, whose gentle and calming pre…