BackNo.62
FEBRUARY 1937
This summary is compiled by Mr. TAKASHI KATSUKI.
DESTRUCTION BY FIRE AND RECONSTRUCTION OF HASE-DERA TEMPLE IN THE MIDDLE AGES (PART I)
By GISHO MORISUE
In this article particular emphasis is to be laid on the statue of the eleven-headed Avalokitesvara, which stood in Hase-dera (Hatsuse-deral) Temple, and its sculptors. The fervent belief of people in this eleven-headed Avalokitesvara caused legends to accumulate around the statue and these were even illustrated in scroll-paintings which are still preserved. Consequently, the reputation of the statue made Hase-dera Temple famous throughout the country in the Middle Ages.
Hase-dera Temple, like several other temples, was under the supervision of Daijo-in of Kofuku-ji Temple, Nara, and had to pay tribute to Daijo-in Temple. However, Hase-dera had a self-organized system.
Since its founding Hase-dera Temple was often destroyed by fire but as often rebuilt by the enthusiastic support of believers. It is recorded that in the Middle Ages the Temple caught fire as many as four times and the statue of Avalokitesvara was also destroyed; yet, every time within a year, the statue was rebuilt, although the reconstruction of the Temple took more time. This was doubtless due to the popularity of the statue.
As an example of the steps taken toward the process of reconstruction the following case is that occasioned by fire which took place in November of the fourth year of Meio (1495 A.D.). A hut, first of all, was built on the spot where the statue of Avalokitesvara stood before it was burned down. Next. the selection of the sculptors and carpenters was made. The final step, one of the most important, was the election of the priests who were to serve on the committees for raising the fund. According to the records these men were usually chosen from among the elder priests. Upon election they began a country-wide drive, traveling throughout the land for years and years until the reconstruction of the Temple was complete. The drive was patronized by Emperor Gotsuchimikado, Shogun Yoshizumi Ashikaga and other notables. However, the drive was principally planned to secure plebeian support.
The measures which were adopted after the destruction of the Temple have been carefully set forth upon reference to the original records. Accounts of the activities of the sculptors and carpenters, materials used and other miscellaneous records regarding the matter may be found in the "Record of the Reconstruction of Hase-dera Temple in the Middle Ages," reprinted in the February number of the Bijutsu Kenkyu, which the reader is advised to consult. The writer will not refer to the problem of the building of the statue of Avalokitesvara in this number but he will conclude the article later with the completion of the Temple and the installation of the statue with special emphasis on the latter.
LANDSCAPE BY SESSHU IN THE OHARA COLLECTION
By NOBUO KUMAGAI
Among the many extant examples ascribed to Sesshu the number of authentic kakemono with eulogistic poems is extremely limited. Of them the present writer believes only two works to be original. Both are landscapes; one belongs to the Imperial Household Museum, Tokyo, and the other to Mr. Magosaburo Ohara's private collection (Pl.III & IV). The writer need not refer to the former here as it is widely known among people.
As seen in the reproduction the latter bears two eulogistic poems written by two Zen priests, Bokusho Shusho and Ryoan Keigo. The former is the writer of the poem in the right-hand corner and the latter of that in the left-hand corner. Bokusho Shusho was a contemporary of Sesshu and he is also known as the artist who painted the "Bodhidharma" of Jisho-in Temple, Kyoto, which is now registered as a National Treasure. The writer has found mention of his relationship to Sesshu in the old records of their time. The relationship seems to have begun after the end of the Kansho era (1465 A.D.) probably in Suo. Accordingly his poem would have been written after that era.
On the other hand this painting by Sesshu, in view of its style, seems to have been painted in the artist's last years. Subsequently the date of the poem by Bokusho Shusho will be sometime previous to the fourth year of Eisho (1597 A. D.)--he probably died about this year although definite information is lacking--when the other poem was written by Ryosen Keigo.
The other panegyric poem seen in the left-hand corner above the picture bears the signature of Ryoan Keigo, Zen priest (d. 1514 A.D.), accompanied by the date of the fourth year of Eisho (1507 A. D.). Of him no description will be needed as he is quite well known. Friendship between Ryoan and Sesshu is evinced in the record that he visited Sesshu's home in Suo in the eighteenth year of Bummei (1486 A. D.) and wrote the "Tenkai-togaro-ki " (1488 A. D.) in which he lauds the art of Sesshu.
Their intimate relationship is also indicated in the poem written on the painting. In a later visit to Unkoku-an Temple in Suo where Sesshu had been living Ryoan learned that both Sesshu and Bokusho Shusho had passed away already, and subsequently he wrote the poem there in the memory of these persons. In light of this fact the writer desires to state his own view point that Sesshu probably died in Unkoku-an Temple in Suo instead of in lwami as is generally believed so far. Further study on this point the writer will discuss in the next number of the Bijutsu Kenkyu.
Of all his landscape paintings this reveals the closest resemblance in style to the famous landscape scroll painted in the eighteenth year of Bummei (1486 A. D.), now in Prince Mori's private collection. This similarity as well as the aforesaid historical references to the picture lead us to opine that the work belongs to Sesshu's later production.
Prince Mori's scroll is patched with a piece of paper differing in quality from that of the ground placed between the picture and the seals of Sesshu, the reason for which puzzles the writer. Mr. Ohara's painting, however, is in perfect condition which gives to this work further meritorious quality. In its organic sense of composition as well as deftness in execution this picture surpasses all other remaining works by the same artist.
BAIREI KONO AND HIS WORK
By MASAHIRO MISUMI
Bairei Kono was a native of Kyoto, born on the third of March in the first year of Koka (1844 A.D.). There he lived for fifty-one years with the vicissitudeous art movements.
According to his autobiography "Koun Shunju" he started his training in art at the age of eight under Raisho Nakajima of the Maruyama school but later he was admitted to the studio of Bunrin Shiokawa of the Shijo school at the age of twenty-seven. In the eleventh year of Meiji (1878 A. D.) Bairei was chiefly instrumental in founding an art School in kyoto by sending a petition with other leading artists to the Governer of Kyoto. Fortunately the proposal was heard and the next year Bairei and his fellow artists launched a campaign for the raising of a fund, principally by selling their works.
In the thirteenth year of Meiji (1880 A.D.) a temporary building of the art school was built and in August of the same year the admission of students to the newly opened Kyoto School of Art was officially announced. The art school offered four different divisions; the East course, in which the Yamato-ye school and the realistic school of painting were taught; the West course in which European painting was taught; the North course, in which, with Bairei as a teacher, the Kano and Sesshu schools of painting were offered; the South course in which "Bunjin-ga," Literary men's painting, was taught. These curricula reflect the general trend of the art world of the time.
After teaching one year Bairei left the art school (1881 A. D.) and opened his studio to the art students, where more than sixty were registered as his pupils. And yet his enthusiastic attitude toward both official and private art exhibitions was invariable. Again Bairei taught at the Kyoto School of Art for two years, the twenty-first and twenty-second years of Meiji (1888-1889 A. D.). During these years the art school was harassed by many difficulties in administration and irregularities on the teaching staff. The original four divisions of the curriculum--East, West, North and South--were reduced to two--that of Oriental painting and of European painting.
But a growing atmosphere of nationalistic sentiment impregnated the art world which finally caused Soryu Tamura, head of the division of the European painting, to resign and which resulted later in the dropping of the division of European painting. Since that time the Kyoto School of Art, now called Kyoto College of Fine Art, has omitted the division of European painting.
In February of the twenty-fourth year of Meiji (1891 A. D.) Bairei suddenly announced his retirement from the art world, and the next year he sent "Landscape in Autumn" to the World Fair held in Chicago. Later Bairei traveled with Bishop Kosho of Higashi-hongan-ji Temple, Kyoto, on the latter's preaching tour. In the twenty-seventh year of Meiji (1894 A. D.) he was commissioned to paint murals in Higashi-hongan-ji Temple, Tokyo, and died the next year upon completion of this work.
As is apparent in the illustrations (Pl. IX, X, XI) Bairei's art was firmly rooted in the traditional style of the Shijo school originally founded by Goshun (Japanese painter, 1752-1811 A.D.) (Pl. VI & VII), and Bairei was the last leading artist who carried on this traditional style. His greatness lies in his contribution as a preceptor of art education in the transitional period.
EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES
Pl. I Large Nabeshima Plate with Floral Design.
Color plate. Diameter: 31.6 cm.; height: 7.7 cm.
Collection of Mr. Matasaku Shiobara, Tokyo.
Explanation by Sensaku Nakagawa.
The Nabeshima ware, to begin with a historical sketch, had its origin in the establishment of the Okochi kiln in the seventh year of Kyoho (1722 A. D.) by Nabeshima, a feudal lord in the northern part of Kyushu. The articles produced were exclusively for his private use and distribution; some he made gifts to the Shogun and some to his fellow feudal lords. Each separate article of the Nabeshima ware was produced by the labor of many different potters; not a single plate but was the outcome of their combined labor. Accordingly the products were all refined examples without exception, representing one of the greatest achievements in porcelain of the Tokugawa period. There are two types of this ware-monochrome and polychrome. An illustration of the latter and better known type may be seen in a masterpiece of polychromatic design reproduced in the February number of the Bijutsu Kenkyu.
As a rule three colors were used: red, yellow and green, with the occasional addition of purple and black. The remarkable color harmony, the deftness in the linear drawing and the unusual originality in design are characteristics of the Nabeshima ware in which genuine Japanese taste, free from the traditional influences of the Chinese and Korean, is fully represented. The present example is decorated with one of the most popular designs of the Nabeshima ware. We notice from the color, glaze and form of the ware that this must be one of the earliest products of the Okochi kiln. Furthermore the gradation of color is so planned as to correspond to the structural change in the form of the plate which, thick at the bottom, progresses to the thinnest part at the rim. The limited number of objects of Nabeshima ware which remain occupy a very small but important corner in the great field of Japanese porcelain but they constitute the quintessence of Japanese porcelain produced in the Tokugawa period.
Pl.II & XII Aizen Myoo.
Color on silk. Mounted as kakemono.
Height: 231.2 cm.; width: 156.1 cm.
Soji-ji Temple, Shiga.
Explanation by Kisaku Tanaka.
This painting of Aizen Myoo is largely executed according to the usual Buddhistic canon of the esoteric sect with the exception that the left hand of Aizen Myoo holds a gem. There is substantiation, however, for the latter in an old record which relates the existence of an Aizen Myoo with a gem in his hand. Our attention is next drawn to the plumpness of the figure, and the linear drawing which is predominant over the coloring. The key-note in the color scheme is vermilion and Chinese white but the tone of color is extremely reduced. These idiosyncrasies cloak the picture in an atmosphere of antiquity.
Although there are many records referring to the image of Aizen Myoo we have scarcely any remaining example of the same subject painted as early as the Fujiwara period and all those which remain are colorful works in contrast to the present unpretentious painting. In point of view of this and other minute points which distinguish themselves the writer comes to the conclusion that this picture was copied in about the end of the Kamakura period an old example with the contemporary addition of certain details. One cannot but admit that this is a masterpiece among an extant examples of the same subject.
Pl. III & IV Landscape, by Sesshu, Japanese painter of the fifteenth century.
Slight color on paper. Mounted as kakemono.
Height: 117.4 cm.; width: 35.2 cm.
Collection of. Mr. Magosaburo Ohara, Okayama.
(See the article by Nobuo Kumagai)
Pl. V Portrait of Yuki Nakado, by Chinzan, Japanese painter, 1801-1854 A. D.
Color on silk. Mounted as kakemono.
Height: 110.9 cm.; width: 44.2 cm.
Collection of Mrs. Yae Suzuki, Kanagawa.
Explanation by Teizo Suganuma.
This artist Chinzan was a versatile man as he is also known as a gifted musician. As an artist he did credible work especially in portrait painting and also in flower and bird themes. In the present portrait of Yuki Nakado, samurai, contemporary of the artist, he paints the face carefully in detail in contrast to the easy lines of the remaining part of the sitter, which is painted in indigo and gray.
The influence of European painting indirectly through Kazan Watanabe, his teacher, is apparent. The portrait by Chinzan, contrary to those by Kazan, has warm expression in technique. The date written by the artist, he was then forty-two years of age, March of the thirteenth year of Tempo (1842 A. D.), and his seal may be seen in the right-hand corner of the picture.
Pl. VI & VII Landscape with Birds, Goshun, Japanese painter, 1752-1811 A. D.
Pair of Six-fold Screens. Slight color on silk.
Height: 164.5 cm.; width: 365.4 cm.
Collection of Mr. Shinsuke Ueno, Shiga.
Explanation by Jiro Umezu.
This pair of screens has long been recognized as Goshun's representative work. Goshun or Gekkei was a native of Kyoto and the founder of the Shijo school in which he compromised both schools of Okyo and Buson. Although the screens are in a pair the left-hand screen (Pl. VII) showing a heron which has just left the branch of a tree is so painted that it must be followed by the right-hand screen showing a flock of small birds perched on another tree. His brush work as seen here especially in the trees and rocks shows the robust influence of Buson under whom Goshun was a pupil until Buson's death and later he was influenced by Okyo's realism which is also revealed here in flowers and small birds. However, Goshun's own style in its maturity over-runs these screen paintings which were painted sometime during the last half of the Temmei era (1781-1788 A. D.) when Goshun was about forty years of age.
Pl. VIII & XIII Eleven-Headed Avalokitesvara.
Wood. Height: 109.6 cm.
Collection of Mr. Jissho Sakamoto, Gifu.
Explanation by Kisaku Tanaka.
In spite of the fact that the remaining sculptures of the Konin period (794-897 A.D.) are limited in numbers there are many variations in style. The present Eleven-headed Avalokitesvara among other examples of the same period is no exception to the above fact.
A characteristic feature of the sculpture, it is observed, is the wave-like technique with which the draperies are carved as is generally shown in those of the Konin period. However, the sharpness in the execution of the draperies as well as the cape-like addition on the shoulders and the skirt which spreads to both sides at the bottom are considered unusual. These characteristic features lead us to surmise that this statue was achieved under the strong influences of the Continent.
The body of the statue is made of a single block of wood with the exception of the arms and the pediment and ten small figures on the head.
Pl. IX Cakrah lndrah Testing Three Animals, by Bairei Kono, Japanese painter, 1844-1895 A. D.
Color on silk. Mounted as kakemono.
Height: 146.5 cm.; width: 71.5 cm.
Collection of Mr. Seiko Kono, Kyoto.
(See the article by Masahiro Misumi)
Pl. X Chinese Lady Picking Mulberry Leaves, by the same artist.
Color on silk. Mounted as kakemono.
Height: 131.5 cm.; width: 50 cm.
Collection of Mr. Seiho Takeuchi, Kyoto.
(See the article by Masahiro Misumi)
Pl. XI Landscape with Wild-Geese, by the same artist.
Slight color on paper. Mounted as kakemono.
Height: 138.1 cm.; width: 65 cm.
Collection of Mr. Sobei Suzuki, Aichi.
(See the article by Masahiro Misumi)