Ōuchi Seiho

Ōuchi Seiho ( Japanese 大 内 青 圃 ; born December 12, 1898 in Tokyo ; died February 21, 1981 ) was a Japanese sculptor of the Taishō and Shōwa period .

life and work

Ōuchi was born in Azabu in Tōkyō as the fifth son of the Buddhist priest Ōuchi Seiran ( 大 内 青 巒 ; 1845-1918). From an early age he was engaged in cutting seals and painting under the guidance of his father and older brother. He then attended the "Tōkyō Bijutsu Gakkō" ( 東京 美術 学校 ), the forerunner of the Tōkyō Geijutsu Daigaku and studied carving under Takamura Kōun and clay modeling under Mizutani Tetsuya. In 1922 he graduated from the school.

In 1927 he exhibited a painted clay figure with the title "Demon" at the exhibition of the private Nihon Bijutsuin , which was then followed by many other contributions to exhibitions at this institution. But he also exhibited at the annual state exhibition, which was initially - abbreviated - " Bunten ", then " Teiten " and after the Pacific War " Nitten ".

Ōuchi was excellent in wood, his "dragon daughter presenting a jewel" ( 竜 女 見 珠 Ryūjo kenju ), exhibited at the Nitten in 1960, won the Minister of Education's Prize ( 文 部 大臣 賞 ). In 1963, his "Tarason Kannon " ( 多 羅 尊 観 音 ), a figure from the 33 Kannon series, was awarded the Academy of Arts Prize. In 1969 he became a member of the Academy, in 1971 he was awarded the 3rd Class Order of Merit.

His deep understanding of Buddhism has accompanied him in the creation of female Buddhist figures, they show gentleness and religious feelings. He has also created many Buddhist sculptures for temples, among which the eleven-headed Kannon should be emphasized, which was finished after ten years of work in 1977 and which then became the central figure in the Tōkyōter branch temple of Eihei-ji , the Chōkoku-ji ( 長 谷 寺 ). It replaced the Kannon, which was lost in the Pacific War, is made from a tree trunk and is about ten meters high. It is also called the "Great Kannon of Azabu" ( 麻布 大 観 音 ).

There are also paintings and woodcuts by Ōuchi.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Ryūken Sawa: Butsuzō Annai. Yoshikawa Kōbunkan, 1963, ISBN 4-642-07206-3 .

literature

• Yutaka Tazawa: Ōuchi Seizō. In: Biographical Dictionary of Japanese Art. Kodansha International, 1981, ISBN 0-87011-488-3 .
• Laurance P. Roberts: Ōuchi Seiho. In: A Dictionary of Japanese Artists. Weatherhill, 1976, ISBN 0-8348-0113-2 .

Japanese name: As is common in Japan, the family name comes before the first name in this article . So Ōuchi is the family name, Seiho the first name.