; 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 Nobuna ...

. He was born in Ōmi province, the fifth son of Kaihō Tsunachika, who was 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 h ...

. At an early age he became a page at the Tōfuku-ji (temple) in Kyōto and, later a lay priest. 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 painter and 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 Kanō school into what it is today. The system was respon ...

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 Moto ...

. Then, he worked at

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

, under the patronage of

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

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 painter Liang Kai, 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 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 ''Pine Trees'' and ''Pine Tree and Flow ...

and

, he gave his name Kaihō to the style of painting he and his followers practiced. As of the Metropolitan Museum of Art 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