BackNo.93
SEPTEMBER 1939
STUDY ON KOETSU'S SHIKISHI DATED NOVEMBER Xl, KEICHO XI
BY PROF. YUKIO YASHIRO
As promised in his article "Koetsu's Shikishi Albums in the East Asiatic Collection, Berlin" published in the Bijutsu Kenkyu No. LXXXV, the writer introduces here a newly found set of shikishi by Koetsu which arc all dated 11th November, 1ith year of Keicho (1606 A.D.). Of those eleven Shikishi eight are owned by Mr. Tamaki Makita--three mounted as kakemono and the others in an album--two, owned by Baron Ino Dan, are pasted on a Furosaki screen, and one, already published in "Takagamine Yorai," a book on Koetsu and his works, formerly belonging to Mr. Kinya Sakamoto: All of them are 20.3 cm. long and 17.9 cm. wide. Flowers or simple landscapes are painted in gold or in silver as ground-designs and on them poems are written in beautiful calligraphy. These poems are mostly about the moon in autumn and are taken from "shinkokin-shu" Anthology.
It is not clear why Koetsu wrote these eleven shikishi on the eleventh day of November or the eleventh month in the eleventh year of Keicho. But the author simply supposes that Koetsu felt some interest in the repetition of the number "eleven" in the date and perhaps thought it lucky. The number eleven is a lucki one in the Far East and it is an old custom which is still followed among Japanese artists to commemorate such a day in some way or other.
In the eleventh year of Keicho (1606) Koetsu was forty-nine years old. According to "Hon-ami Gyojoki" which is an important biography of Koetsu written by his grandson Koho, he studied calligraphy in his thirty-eighth year under Priest-Prince Soncho of Shoren-in Monastery who was the representative artist of the Oieryu school of calligraphy that flourished throughout the Tokugawa period. But in these shikishi of the eleventh year of Keicho Koetsu does not follow the graceful and somewhat superficial style of the Oieryu school, for by this time it seems that he had already developed his own style. His master of calligraphy, Priest-Prince Soncho, was a wise teacher who did not force him to follow slavishly the tradition of the Oieryu but guided his genius in such a way that he soon established his individuality in art. Besides, Koetsu was influenced in calligrahy by "Hon-ami-gire," an autotgaphical manuscript said to have been written by Tofu, famous calligrapher of the Heian period. (Because this is owned by Hon-ami Koetsu, it is called "Hon-ami-gire".) Koetsu at that time had not attained Kukai,s bony and mysterious style as he did in his later years, but was absolutely artistic and decorative in calligraphical style matching well his inner personality which was elegant and purely Japanese. It is said that he was stricken with paralysis in his late years and in these shikishi which were written by him in his forty-nineth year we already find symptoms of this disease.
As for the ground-designs of the shikishi the author attributes them to Sotatsu. "Scroll of Deer" with the seal of "Inen" in Baron Masuda's collection and "Scroll of Flowers" in Baron Dan's collection prove that Sotatsu and Koetsu sometimes worked together. "Scroll of Lotus" in Baron Okura's collection, "Scroll of Bamboo, Cherry, and Plovers" in Mr. Makita's collection, Koetsu's shikishi albums in the East Asiatic Collection, Berlin, and a set of Koetsu's shikishi in Mr. Shiobara's collection, which is going to be published in this Journal by the same author in near future, all these works contain the same kind of brushwork and design and indicate the co-operation of the two artists. As an example of Sotatsu's familiar ground-designs for Koetsu's calligraphy, we may mention here the pattern of sea-beach on one of the shikishi. The most typical work with this design on a large scale are those famous screen-paintings of "Matsushima" in the Freer Gallery of Art, U.S.A., which were already published in the Bijutsu Kenkyu No. LXXIII.
The latest work on which Koetsu and Sotatsu undoubtedly worked together is the scroll in Baron Dan's collection and the writer considers its date to be in the Kwan-ei era of Koetsu's life (1624-1637). Till this time the two great masters, Koetsu and Sotatsu, worked together for more than twenty years, beginning about the eleventh year of Keicho in which the present shikishi were achieved. At that time Sotatsu must have been still young and we see his artistic skill not yet ripe enough in the designs of the present shikishi as compared to his later and maturer works. However, these eleven shikishi are really valuable not only for their artistic quality but for their inscribed date, which gives a chronological standard for Koetsu's career as calligrapher and for the artistic collaboration between Koetsu and Sotatsu.
SCROLL "THIRTY-SIX PRIEST-POETS"
BY JIRO UMEZU
For a time drawing of poet-saints was in fashion as a special kind of portraiture. And gradually not only that of ordinary poet-saints but some different subjects and forms were also adopted. The present scroll entitled "Thirty-Six Priest-Poets" is one of them. The author introduces here four fragments of it which were originally contained in one scroll they are as follows:--
1. Fragment in the collection of Mr. Nobutsuna Sasaki. Mounted as scroll. Contents: inside title, preface, Priest Daruma (figure and his poem), Prince Shotoku Taishi (figure only), Priest Bodai (figure and his poem). and Priest Gyoki (figure and his poem).
2. Another fragment in the same collection. Mounted as Kakemono. Contents: Priest Genpin (figure and his poem).
3. Fragment in anonymous collection. Contents: Priest Mamsei (figure and his poem).
4. Another fragment in anonymous collection. Mounted as kakemono. Contents: Priest Jikaku (figure and his poem), and Priest Chisho (figure and his poem).
Besides these four fragments the writer publishes here another scroll in the collection of the Imperial Art School of Tokyo. It is Tsunenobu's sketch done from the scroll which originally contained the above-mentioned four fragments. The writer has found it recently among the same artist's many copy-scrolls of old paintings. Comparing this sketch by Tsunenobu with another copy in the collection of the Imperial Household Museum, Tokyo, the author gives an interesting study concerning the aspect of the original scroll and the relation between the original and the existing fragments of Mr. Sasaki and of the anonymous collections.
There are many versions of this "Thirty-Six Priest-Poets" but Tsunenobu's sketch-scroll is considered to be the most perfect one in text and the copy in the collection of the Imperial Household Museum seems chose, in form, to the original. The latter was copied in the second year of Tempo (1831) not from the original scroll but from the third or fohnrth copy of it. Moreover, it contains only the latter part of the original scroll beginning with Priest Semimaru and is not so excellent in brushwork. The remarkable point of this copy is, however, that the figures are represented with appropriate backgrounds which interpret the atcompanying poems. Accordinv to the text, the scroll from which this version owned by the Museum was copied was originally called "Shirin-genyo-shu" and this fact tells that the copy owned by the Museum had some close connection with the set of paintings recorded as "Shirin-genyo-e" in "Sanetaka's Diary" on the twenty-first of August in the fifteenth year of Bunmei (1483) and also that the style of the Museum's scroll existed already in Sanetaka's time. Considering these points, the author surmises that in the original scroll of "Thirty-Six Priest-Poets " the backgrounds were painted as illustrations of the poems as is done in the scroll of the Museum. Then, we can easily understand the reason why the figure of Prince Shotoku Taishi in Tsunenobu's sketch is painted comparatively small as an addition to the figure of Priest Daruma and also Priest Kobo in the same sketch sits in a cave unlike the other figures. Judging from the style of the painting and calligraphy, the fragments in the collection of Mr. Sasaki seem to belong to the Nanbokucho era, a short period previous to the Muromachi estabhishment. The paintings and the poems of this edition were both copied by one hand. The drawing of the lines of the clothes are intricate and, moreover, we find in the preface a funny mistake which can be hardly imagined to have been written by the writer of the text of the original scroll. Certainly these weak points tell that they are not the fragments of the original. In a word, the original scroll which, according to the record in the preface, was produced in the third year of Jowa (1347) seems to have been in form just like that of the Museum's, and the scroll in Mr. Sasaki's collection would probably be a direct copy of only figures and poems of the original.
Under the title in the scroll the name of Priest Eikai of Kwanjuji Temple is written as the selector of the poems. Though it is questionable whether the writer of the text of the original scroll wrote this name himself or not. it is quite possible especially concerning the time and besides we have no positive reasons to object to this record. Eikai was a good poet as well as a high priest. In the first year of Jowa (1345) he was promoted to the head of Toji Temple and died two years after at the age of seventy-three. One of his short poems was selected for each of the three famous old Japanese anthologies. "Shinshui," "Shingoshui," and "Shinsenzai." So he may have selected the poems of this "Thirty-Six Proest-Poets" as written in the scroll.
THE TEXT OF THE SCROLL "THIRTY-SIX PRIEST-POETS"
The text of "Thirty-Six Priest-Poets" is reprinted here from Tsunenobu's scroll which is contained in his forty-seventh sketch-scroll in the collection of the Tokyo Imperial Art School. See the article by J. Umezu.
EXPLANATION OF THE PLATES
Pls. I (Colour), II, VI, VII & VIII Shikishi written by Koetsu (Japanese 1558-1637).
Kakemono and album.
Height: (each) 20.3 cm.; width: (each) 17.9 cm.
Collection of Mr. Tamaki Makita, Tokyo.
(see the article by Prof. Y. Yashiro.)
Pls. III & XIII "Acala and Two Attendants."
Colour on silk. Kakemono.
Height: 118.7 cm.; width: 90.3 cm.
Collection of Ruriji Temple, Hyogo.
In spite of the strict rule for drawing figures of esoteric sects, Acala is sometimes treated in different ways. And also it is interesting that in course of time the figure of Acala was often painted in a moving posture. The present painting of Acala belongs, however, to the most typical style of treating it both in torn and technique. The body is outlined clearly with strong, thick lines and the colouring of the garments is very elaborate with the use of five colours, gold leaf, clever shading, and delicate designs of the clothes. Certahy the present painting can not be a late work but, considering the solemn tone which we feel in the whole figure, we rather attribute it to the earlier part of the Kamakura period. In the flame behind the figure we can recognize some later touches of repair.
The background suggesting water is noticeable in this painting. We often find such waves painted at the back of standing Acala in the paintings of the Kamakura period and later than that. On the contrary in iconographicah scrolls a few waves are drawn in front of the rock-seat. (We do not understand whether it is the substitution for the waves in the background or not.) If such background of waves was in fashion in the Kamakura period as we surmise from many examples of the time, the present Acala painting seems to be a comparatively early work of the Kamakura period which adopted this newly imported composition of Sung painting in the traditional style of the image.
Pl. IV "Thirty-Six Priest-Poets."
Colour on paper. Scroll.
Height: 28.3 cm.; length: 191.0 cm.
Collection of Mr. Nobutsuna Sasaki, Tokyo.
(See the article by J. Umezu.)
PI. V "Buddha."
Bronze Statuette.
Height: 43.5 cm.
Collection of the Tokyo Imperial Art School.
From its form we can not decide whether the present Buddha statuette is Sakya or Bhaisajya-guru which has lost the pot in his hand. This statuette is cast in bronze and hollow inside. It is comparatively big for a statuette of this kind. The figure looks black with rust except some parts where bits of gilt remain. Though it seems never to have been exposed to five, part of the knee is broken and rejointed with a nail in front and repaired with the same material at the back. The proportions of the head and the body are like a grown-up person but the innocent posture, head up and chest spread, reflects the simple and unsophisticated beauty of the ancient sculpture. The general effect and technique in detail--for instance, the pattern on the edge of the clothes--is rather unusual and we may possibly suspect that it was a work of the continent. However, judging from the similarity which we find in the statue of Sakya in Jindaiji Temple (illustrated in the Bijutsu Kenkyu No. LXXXIII) and in a statuette of Buddha in the set of "Forty-Eight Statuettes" in the Royal Colection, both of which were undoubtedly produced in Japan, we are rather inclined to think it a Japanese work. Though the expression is mellow reflecting the characteristic style of the Hakuho period, the small nose and the hollow around the mouth show traces of an older style than that of the Sakya statue in Jindaiji. Probably it was produced in the early Hakuho period. The treatment of the features, curly hair which is the same as that of the Amitabha statuette in Princess Tachibana's Zushi in Horyuji Temple, and the part of the clothes round the waist are especially noticeable, for they show the delicate devrelopment in sculpture between the Suiko and the Hakuho period.
Pl. IX Shikishi by Koetsu.
Pasted on screen.
Height: 20.3 ch.; width: 17.9 cm.
Collection of Baron Ino Dan, Tokyo.
(See the article by Prof. Y. Yashiro.)
Pl. X Fragment of the Scroll "Thirty-Six Priest-Poets."
Slight colour on paper. Kakemono.
Height: 28.9 cm.; width: 17.9 cm.
Collection of Mr. Nobutsuna Sasaki, Tokyo.
(See the article by J. Umezu.)
Pls. XI & XII "Thirty-Six Priest-Poets." Sketch from the original by Tsunenobu (Japanese, 1636-1713).
Ink-painting on paper. Scroll.
Height: 18.6 cm.
Collection of the Tokyo Imperial Art School.