Kaihō Yushō

One of the seven wise men with a companion

From the " four arts"

Kaihō Yūshō ( Japanese 海北 友 松 ; 1533 - 1615 , real name Shōeki ( 昭 益 )) was a Japanese painter of the Momoyama period , equal in importance to Kanō Eitoku and Hasegawa Tōhaku .

Live and act

Yūshō was the fifth son of Kaihō Zen'emon-no-jō, an important samurai of the Azai clan , who ruled large parts of the Ōmi province . As a youth he was given to the important temple in Kyoto, the Tofuku-ji , for religious training. But when the Asai clan was wiped out in the fighting of the Sengoku period in 1573 , he returned to civilian life to defend the reputation of the Kaihō family. He felt like a warrior throughout his life, even when he later worked as a painter. He is said to have studied under Kanō Motonobu , one of the leading painters of the Kanō school; at least his style points in that direction. At the age of 41 he came into the service of the abbot of Tofuku-ji and was now associated with other leading Zen priests in the city.

Yūshō's earliest known works include the works in Kennin-ji , one of the most important Zen temples in Kyōto , in 1599 . He was over 60 at the time and had found his style. He sketched human figures sparingly with sweeping strokes, a style of painting that is reminiscent of Liang Kai , a painter from the Southern Song period . This resulted in “bag people” ( 袋 人物 , fukuro-jimbutsu ), such as the “Seven Wise Men in the Bamboo Grove ” ( 竹 林七賢 図 , Chikurin shichiken-zu ; 16 hanging scrolls) to decorate an anteroom to an altar. Other embellishments in Kennin-ji are

• "Flowers and birds" ( 花鳥 図 , Kachō-zu ; 8 hanging scrolls )
• "Dragon in Clouds" ( 雲 竜 図 , Unryū-zu ; 8 hanging scrolls)
• " Four arts ( Koto , Go , calligraphy and painting)" ( 琴棋 書画 図 , Kin-ki-sho-ga-zu ; 10 hanging scrolls)
• "Landscapes" ( 山水 図 , Sansui-zu ; 8 hanging scrolls)

All works from the Kennin-ji rooms have been handed over to the Kyōto National Museum for safekeeping.

The painting "Pines, Bamboo and Plums" ( 松竹梅 図 , Shō-chiku-bai-zu ) is in Zenkyō-an, a sub-temple of Kennin-ji.

Yūshō also painted strongly colored on a golden background, such as the three pairs of adjustable screens “Flowers and Grasses” ( 花卉 図 , Kaki-zu ), the “Four Arts”, the “Three Saurs - Kanzan and Jittoku” ( 三酸 ・ 寒山 拾得 図 , Sanzan - Kanzan Jittoku zu ), all owned by the Myōshin-ji . - In his last years after 1610, Yūshō seems to have mainly occupied himself with ink painting, which was glued to display screens.

In addition to the pair of adjustable screens “Landscape”, the MOA Art Museum has another one entitled “Landscape in the Four Seasons” ( 四季 山水 , Shiki sansui ), each consisting of 8 panels.

photos

• 

  Landscape with Pavilions. Left screen

• 

  Landscape with Pavilions. Right screen

• 

  Zenkyō-an sliding door, detail

• 

  "Flowers and Grasses"

Individual evidence

1. ↑ ^{a b} Owned by Kennin-ji.

Remarks

1. ↑ Pine, bamboo and plum are the "three friends in the cold season".
2. ^ MOA art museum

literature

• Tazawa Yutaka: Biographical Dictionary of Japanese Art. Kodansha International, 1981. ISBN 0-87011-488-3 .
• Laurence P. Roberts: A Dictionary of Japanese Artists. Weatherhill, 1976. ISBN 0-8348-0113-2 .
• Mainichi Shimbun-sha (Ed.): Juyo bunkasai 10 (Kaiga IV) Mainichi Shimbun, 1974

Web link

Commons : Kaihō Yūshō  - collection of images, videos and audio files