; real name: Kaiho Shōeki, " brush name": Yusho (alternative names: ''Josetsusai'', ''Yūkeisai'', ''Yūtoku''), was a Japanese painter of the

Azuchi–Momoyama period The was the final phase of the in Japanese history from 1568 to 1600. After the outbreak of the Ōnin War in 1467, the power of the Ashikaga Shogunate effectively collapsed, marking the start of the chaotic Sengoku period. In 1568, Oda Nob ...

. He was born in Ōmi province, the fifth son of Kaihō Tsunachika, a vassal of

Azai Nagamasa was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku period known as the brother-in-law and enemy of Oda Nobunaga. Nagamasa was head of the Azai clan seated at Odani Castle in northern Ōmi Province and married Nobunaga's sister Oichi in 1564, fathering ...

Biography

Born into a military family, he became a page at the

Tōfuku-ji is a Buddhist temple in Higashiyama-ku in Kyoto, Japan. Tōfuku-ji takes its name from two temples in Nara, Tōdai-ji and Kōfuku-ji.Japan ReferenceTōfuku-ji/ref> It is one of the Kyoto ''Gozan'' or "five great Zen temples of Kyoto". It ...

(temple) when he moved to

Kyōto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. , the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it the ninth-most pop ...

and, later a

lay priest In religious organizations, the laity () — individually a layperson, layman or laywoman — consists of all members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-ordained members of religious orders, e.g. a nun or a lay brother. I ...

. He served there under the abbot and associated with the leading Zen priests of Kyōto. In his forties, Yūshō turned to painting and became a pupil in the Kanō School, either under the famous

Kanō Motonobu was a Japanese people, Japanese Japanese painting, painter and Japanese calligraphy, calligrapher. He was a member of the Kanō school of painting. Through his political connections, patronage, organization, and influence he was able to make the ...

or his grandson

Kanō Eitoku was a Japanese painter who lived during the Azuchi–Momoyama period of Japanese history and one of the most prominent patriarchs of the Kanō school of Japanese painting. Life and works Born in Kyoto, Eitoku was the grandson of Kanō Motonob ...

. Then, he worked at

Jurakudai The Jurakudai or Jurakutei () was a palace constructed at the order of Toyotomi Hideyoshi in Kyoto, Japan. History Construction began in 1586, when Hideyoshi had taken the post of , and required nineteen months to complete. Its total area was ...

, under the patronage of

Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods and regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: ...

and the

Emperor Go-Yōzei was the 107th Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Go-Yōzei's reign spanned the years 1586 through to his abdication in 1611, corresponding to the transition between the Azuchi–Momoyama period and the Edo period ...

. At first, he patterned his work after

Song A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...

painter

Liang Kai Liang Kai (; ''c''. 1140 - ''c''. 1210) was a Chinese painter of the Southern Song Dynasty. He was also known as Madman Liang because of his very informal pictures. He was born in Shandong and worked in Lin An (later Hangzhou). He is known to have ...

, doing only monochrome ink paintings, using a "reduced brush stroke" (''gempitsu''), relying more on ink washes than sharp hard strokes. Later, he worked in fashionable rich colors and gold leaf. Artistically on a level with

Hasegawa Tōhaku was a Japanese Painting, painter and founder of the Hasegawa school. He is considered one of the great painters of the Azuchi–Momoyama period (1573-1603), and he is best known for his folding screens, such as ''Shōrin-zu byōbu, Pine Trees ...

and

, he gave his name Kaihō to the style of painting he and his followers practiced. He acquired fame during his lifetime and his patrons included

and the

emperor Go-Yōzei was the 107th Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Go-Yōzei's reign spanned the years 1586 through to his abdication in 1611, corresponding to the transition between the Azuchi–Momoyama period and the Edo period ...

. As of the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...

exhibition of 1975, most of the artist's extant works were ink paintings produced during his late sixties for the Zen temple

Kennin-ji is a historic Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan, and head temple of its associated branch of Rinzai Buddhism. It is considered to be one of the so-called Kyoto ''Gozan'' or "five most important Zen temples of Kyoto". History Kennin-ji was ...

in Kyoto.

Important Cultural Property status

Several of Yūshō's works have been designated as Registered Important Cultural Property. Among these are the following: *Landscape, 1599. Two hanging scrolls, ink on paper. Located in

, Kyoto, Japan *Plum and pine, around 1599. Four sliding doors, ink on paper. Located in Zenkyō-an (Kennin-ji), Kyoto, Japan (See detail in "Oiseaux sur une branche de pin" in gallery below.) *The four accomplishments, late 16th century. Pair of six-fold screens, ink and light color on paper. Located in Reitō-in (Kennin-ji), Kyoto, Japan

Gallery

File:Flowers by Kaiho Yusho.jpg, Flowers by Kaiho Yusho File:Kaihô Yûshô - Pine and Plum by Moonlight - Google Art Project.jpg, Kaihô Yûshô - Pine and Plum by Moonlight - Google Art Project File:L'un des sept sages (1533-1615) par le peintre japonais Kaihō Yūshō.jpg, L'un des sept sages (1533-1615) par le peintre japonais Kaihō Yūshō File:Oiseaux sur une branche de pin (1533-1615) par le peintre japonais Kaihō Yūshō.jpg, Oiseaux sur une branche de pin (1533-1615) par le peintre japonais Kaihō Yūshō File:Kaihô Yûshô - Pine and Plum by Moonlight - Google Art Project (399082).jpg, Kaihô Yûshô - Pine and Plum by Moonlight - Google Art Project (399082)

References

External links

Momoyama, Japanese Art in the Age of Grandeur
an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on Kaihō Yūshō
Bridge of dreams: the Mary Griggs Burke collection of Japanese art
a catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on Kaihō Yūshō (see index) {{DEFAULTSORT:Kaiho, Yusho 1533 births 1615 deaths Japanese painters Artists from Shiga Prefecture