was the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

of a

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

ese painter in the ''

Nihonga ''Nihonga'' (, "Japanese-style paintings") are Japanese paintings from about 1900 onwards that have been made in accordance with traditional Japanese artistic conventions, techniques and materials. While based on traditions over a thousand years ...

'' style, active during the Taishō and Shōwa eras. His real name was Kawabata Shotarō.

Biography

He was born in

Wakayama city Wakayama City Hall is the capital city of Wakayama Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 351,391 in 157066 households and a population density of 1700 persons per km². The total area of the city is ...

Wakayama Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Wakayama Prefecture has a population of 944,320 () and has a geographic area of . Wakayama Prefecture borders Osaka Prefecture to the north, and Mie Prefecture and Nara Prefecture ...

. He moved to

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

in 1895. Initially interested in literature, he studied under the poet Kawabata Hoja, who introduced him to the '' Hototogisu'' artistic circle. He then became interested in painting instead, and studied ''

yōga is a style of artistic painting in Japan, typically of Japanese subjects, themes, or landscapes, but using Western (European) artistic conventions, techniques, and materials. The term was coined in the Meiji period (1868–1912) to distingu ...

'' painting techniques as an apprentice in the studios of the '' Hakubakai.'' When he was 18, he entered a

Yomiuri Shimbun The (lit. ''Reading-selling Newspaper'' or ''Selling by Reading Newspaper'') is a Japanese newspaper published in Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka, and other major Japanese cities. It is one of the five major newspapers in Japan; the other four are t ...

illustration contest, from which his work was selected. He continued working on newspaper illustrations to earn a living as he studied

oil painting Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments with a medium of drying oil as the binder. It has been the most common technique for artistic painting on wood panel or canvas for several centuries, spreading from Europe to the rest of ...

. In 1913, he traveled to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

to study western-style painting techniques in more depth, but was so impressed with the Japanese art that he saw during a visit to the

Boston Museum of Fine Arts The Museum of Fine Arts (often abbreviated as MFA Boston or MFA) is an art museum in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the 20th-largest art museum in the world, measured by public gallery area. It contains 8,161 paintings and more than 450,000 works ...

that he switched to the ''

'' genre on his return to Japan in 1914, displaying at the ''Inten'' Exhibition in 1915. He left ''Inten'' in 1928 in protest of its increasing rigid rules, and established his own ''Nihonga'' art circle, the ''Seiryūsha'' in 1928. The ''Seiryūsha'' held an exhibition on competition to the ''Inten'' twice a year from 1929 to 1965 in Tokyo. In addition, Ryūshi usually held a personal exhibition in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

once per year. Ryūshi was a major advocate of , which emphasized the public nature of art. His works therefore tended to be on a huge scale, and were intended for public display in large areas. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, together with

Yokoyama Taikan was the art-name of a major figure in pre-World War II Japanese painting. He is notable for helping create the Japanese painting technique of ''Nihonga''. Early life Yokoyama was born in Mito city, Ibaraki Prefecture, as the eldest son of S ...

and

Kawai Gyokudō was the pseudonym of a Japanese painter in the nihonga school, active from Meiji through Shōwa period Japan. His real name was Kawai Yoshisaburō. Biography Gyokudō was born in what is now Ichinomiya city, Aichi Prefecture, as the eldest ...

, he came to be regarded as one of the "Three Big Figures" in the field of ''Nihonga'' painting. In 1950, after the death of his wife and son, he went on a pilgrimage of the 88 holy places in

Shikoku is the smallest of the four main islands of Japan. It is long and between wide. It has a population of 3.8 million (, 3.1%). It is south of Honshu and northeast of Kyushu. Shikoku's ancient names include ''Iyo-no-futana-shima'' (), '' ...

, taking a total of six years to make the circuit, and sketching extensively along the way. In 1959, he was awarded the

Order of Culture The is a Japanese order, established on February 11, 1937. The order has one class only, and may be awarded to men and women for contributions to Japan's art, literature, science, technology, or anything related to culture in general; recipien ...

by the Japanese government. Ryushi Memorial Museum of Art

In 1963, shortly before his death, his house in

Ōta, Tokyo is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward located in Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. In English, it is often called Ōta City. , the ward has an estimated population of 716,413, with 379,199 households and a population density of 12,048.65 per ...

was transformed into the Ōta Municipal Ryushi Memorial Hall. It was donated to the city of Ōta by his heirs in 1990, and contains most of his larger works. Kawabata Ryūshi - Passion (Aizen)

Philately

One of Ryūshi's works was selected as the subject of a

commemorative postage stamp A commemorative stamp is a postage stamp, often issued on a significant date such as an anniversary, to honor or commemorate a place, event, person, or object. The ''subject'' of the commemorative stamp is usually spelled out in print, unlike de ...

by the Japanese government: * 1979: ''Aizen'' ("Passion"), commemorating the 61st Inter-Parliamentary Conference

Gallery

Kawabata R 1.jpg, „Naruto“, 1929 (6 part screen on left) Kawabata R 1a.jpg, „Naruto“, 1929 (6 part screen on right) Kawabata R 7.jpg, „Blazing Grass“, 1930 (a pair of six-piece screens) Kawabata R 6.jpg, „Wild Grapes“, 1933

References

* Conant, Ellen P., Rimer, J. Thomas, Owyoung, Stephen. ''Nihonga: Transcending the Past: Japanese-Style Painting, 1868-1968''. Weatherhill (1996).

External links

Bio and photos of worksRyushi Memorial Hall official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kawabata, Ryushi 1885 births 1966 deaths Nihonga painters Buddhist artists People from Wakayama (city) Recipients of the Order of Culture 20th-century Japanese painters Artists from Wakayama Prefecture