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Okumura Masanobu ( ja, 奥村 政信; 1686 – 13 March 1764) was a Japanese print designer, book publisher, and painter. He also illustrated novelettes and in his early years wrote some fiction. At first his work adhered to the
Torii school
A is a traditional Japanese gate most commonly found at the entrance of or within a Shinto shrine, where it symbolically marks the transition from the mundane to the sacred.
The presence of a ''torii'' at the entrance is usually the simplest ...
, but later drifted beyond that. He is a figure in the formative era of
ukiyo-e
Ukiyo-e is a genre of Japanese art which flourished from the 17th through 19th centuries. Its artists produced woodblock prints and paintings
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surfac ...
doing early works on actors and
bijin-ga
is a generic term for pictures of beautiful women () in Japanese art, especially in woodblock printing of the ukiyo-e genre.
Definition
defines as a picture that simply "emphasizes the beauty of women", and the ''Shincho Encyclopedia of W ...
("pictures of beautiful women").
Life and career
While Masanobu's early life is largely undocumented, he is believed to have been born about 1686, possibly in
Edo (modern Tokyo). Edo was a small fishing village when it was
Tokugawa Ieyasu
was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the three "Great Unifiers" of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and fellow ...
chose it as his administrative capital of the
Tokugawa shogunate
The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...
, and by the early 17th century the city had prospered and its population had grown to half a million.
Masanobu appears to have been self-taught painter (though he did study poetry under Tachiba Fukaku); he is not known to have belonged to any artistic school.
His early work shows the influence of the
Torii school
A is a traditional Japanese gate most commonly found at the entrance of or within a Shinto shrine, where it symbolically marks the transition from the mundane to the sacred.
The presence of a ''torii'' at the entrance is usually the simplest ...
of ukiyo-e painting, particularly
Torii Kiyonobu I
Torii Kiyonobu I ( ja, 鳥居 清信; – 22 August 1729) was a Japanese painter and printmaker in the ukiyo-e style, who is renowned for his work on kabuki signboards and related materials. Along with his father Torii Kiyomot ...
, and he likely learned from the examples of
Torii Kiyomasa and the early ukiyo-e artist
Hishikawa Moronobu
Hishikawa Moronobu ( ja, 菱川 師宣; 1618 – 25 July 1694) was a Japanese artist known for popularizing the ukiyo-e genre of woodblock prints and paintings in the late 17th century. He consolidated the works of scattered Japanese art s ...
. A print album published by
Kurihara Chōemon in 1701 depicting courtesans in the
Yoshiwara
was a famous (red-light district) in Edo, present-day Tokyo, Japan. Established in 1617, Yoshiwara was one of three licensed and well-known red-light districts created during the early 17th century by the Tokugawa shogunate, alongside Shima ...
pleasure district is Masanobu's earliest surviving signed work, followed by a similar work ten months later. Moronobu provided the illustrations, and sometimes text, for at least twenty-two
ukiyo-zōshi
is the first major genre of popular Japanese fiction, written between the 1680s and 1770s in Kyoto and Osaka. ''Ukiyo-zōshi'' literature developed from the broader genre of ''Kanazōshi, kana-zōshi'', books written in the ''katakana'' vernacula ...
novels and librettos for
puppet theatre
Puppetry is a form of theatre or performance that involves the manipulation of puppets – inanimate objects, often resembling some type of human or animal figure, that are animated or manipulated by a human called a puppeteer. Such a performa ...
between 1703 and 1711. These included a modernized illustrated version of the 11th-century ''
Tale of Genji
Tale may refer to:
* Narrative, or story, a report of real or imaginary connected events
* TAL effector (TALE), a type of DNA binding protein
* Tale, Albania, a resort town
* Tale, Iran, a village
* Tale, Maharashtra, a village in Ratnagiri distri ...
'' in eighteen volumes, whose translation was by Masanobu.
After 1711 Masanobu's output of book illustrations shriveled as he turned his attention to albums of prints, usually about a dozen per set, on a variety of themes—most outstanding of which were the comic albums. These prints, influenced perhaps by 12th-century
Toba-e and the caricature paintings of
Hanabusa Itchō
was a Japanese painter, calligrapher, and haiku poet. He originally trained in the Kanō style, under Kanō Yasunobu, but ultimately rejected that style and became a literati (''bunjin''). He was also known as Hishikawa Waō and by a number ...
(1652–1724), depicted humorous scenes from, or parodies of,
Noh
is a major form of classical Japanese dance-drama that has been performed since the 14th century. Developed by Kan'ami and his son Zeami, it is the oldest major theatre art that is still regularly performed today. Although the terms Noh and ' ...
,
kabuki
is a classical form of Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily-stylised performances, the often-glamorous costumes worn by performers, and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers.
Kabuki is thought to ...
, and
Japanese mythology
Japanese mythology is a collection of traditional stories, folktales, and beliefs that emerged in the islands of the Japanese archipelago. Shinto and Buddhist traditions are the cornerstones of Japanese mythology. The history of thousands of year ...
. This period also saw Masanobu produce large
kakemono __NOTOC__
A , more commonly referred to as a , is a Japanese hanging scroll used to display and exhibit paintings and calligraphy inscriptions and designs mounted usually with silk fabric edges on a flexible backing, so that it can be rolled fo ...
-sized portraits of courtesans, whose designs had a warmth and humanity largely absent from the earlier Torii and
Kaigetsudō beauties. The financial restraints of the
Kyōhō Reforms
The were an array of economic and cultural policies introduced by the Tokugawa shogunate between 1722–1730 during the Edo period to improve its political and social status. These reforms were instigated by the eighth Tokugawa ''shōgun'' of Ja ...
begun in 1717 brought an end to the luxury of these large prints, replaced by smaller ''
hosoban
Woodblock printing in Japan (, ''mokuhanga'') is a technique best known for its use in the ''ukiyo-e'' artistic genre of single sheets, but it was also used for printing books in the same period. Widely adopted in Japan during the Edo period (160 ...
''-sized prints, which were often sold as triptychs—which when placed together were little smaller than the kakemono-sized prints. At least as early as 1718, Masanobu's were some of the earliest
urushi-e
''Urushi-e'' (漆絵 "lacquer picture ) refers to three different techniques in Japanese art. Though urushi-e is most associated with woodblock, the term urushi-e is not exclusive to that medium. It can also refer to pictures using lacquer as ...
prints, printed with brass powder sprinkled on the ink, which created a
lacquer
Lacquer is a type of hard and usually shiny coating or finish applied to materials such as wood or metal. It is most often made from resin extracted from trees and waxes and has been in use since antiquity.
Asian lacquerware, which may be ca ...
effect.
About 1721 Masanobu abandoned the publishers of his earlier works and opened his own wholesaler, Okumura-ya, in Tōri Shio-chō in Edo. His trade mark was a gourd-shaped sign, a mark he thereafter stamped on the works he printed.
It is likely that Masanobu died at 78 in 1764; 1769 has also been given as his death date.
Art styles
Okumura Masanobu is said to be master of the
urushi-e
''Urushi-e'' (漆絵 "lacquer picture ) refers to three different techniques in Japanese art. Though urushi-e is most associated with woodblock, the term urushi-e is not exclusive to that medium. It can also refer to pictures using lacquer as ...
style. Urushi-e is usually done on
woodblocks and has thick black lines. Styles of urushi-e can be found in many works from Masanobu. The most famous examples are ''Large Perspective View of the Interior of Echigo-ya in Suruga-chô'', ''Actor holding folders, Actor as Wakanoura Osana Komachi, Actors Ôtani Hiroji and Sodesaki Iseno'', and ''Lion, Peonies, and Rock''. All of these works have dark, thick lines and are made on woodblocks. His works are famous for his gentile and flowing lines throughout his drawings.
He has a recurring pattern consisting of tan backgrounds and neutral coloring. His pieces capture things and or people in motion. His objects in drawings are always in mid-motion of walking somewhere or doing something. Masanobu was famous for capturing the beauty of nature. He painted and drew birds, women, men, actors, and warriors. The Japanese women he draws have the same style and ‘boneless’ structure. The faces show; however, the bodies are covered by long, flowing dresses. This style is referred to as
tan-e: drawing women as full-bodied and round. The tan-e style brings a sense of gentleness and gracefulness to the beauties.
Okumura Masanobu's art consists of the insights of stores and theatres. These pieces are large-scale and referred to as uki-e.
Uki-e
refers to a genre of ukiyo-e pictures that employs western conventions of linear perspective. Although they never constituted more than a minor genre, pictures in perspective were drawn and printed by Japanese artists from their introduction in ...
is a style used by Japanese artists that means “looming picture”. He was very good at capturing the luxury and leisure of his paintings on theatre. He played around and experimented with all kinds of styles on woodprints and was always willing to learn more. By experimenting, he created and is said to be the first artist to make
pillar prints. Okumura is also said to be the creator of the large, wide, vertical prints referred to as
habahiro hashira-e. Many of his scripts are examples of this style of print.
Masanobu was known for staying true to his time and what he was good at. He created many new styles that are used today; without him art wouldn't be the same.
Masanobu's
ukiyo-e
Ukiyo-e is a genre of Japanese art which flourished from the 17th through 19th centuries. Its artists produced woodblock prints and paintings
Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surfac ...
were mostly produced in the Kyōhō era. They display the printmaker's sense of line, colour, and composition. The subjects are most often humorous and are executed in a lively manner with figures in brightly coloured, fashionable clothing.
Gallery
Brooklyn Museum - A Roofer's Precariousness - Okumura Masanobu.jpg, ''A Roofer's Precariousness''
Brooklyn Museum - Daytime in the Gay Quarters - Okumura Masanobu.jpg, ''Daytime in the Gay Quarters''
Attributed-to-Okumura-Masanobu-tiger-and-bamboo.jpg, ''Tiger and Bamboo'',
Morita-za in the 1790s.jpg, ''Morita-za''
Okumura Masanobu - Taking the Evening Cool by Ryōgoku Bridge.png, ''Taking the Evening Cool by Ryōgoku Bridge'', 1745
Shibai Ukie by Masanobu Okumura.jpg, ''Shibai Uki-e'',
Legacy
The era Masanobu was born into was a prosperous and creatively fertile one, in which flourished the
haiku
is a type of short form poetry originally from Japan. Traditional Japanese haiku consist of three phrases that contain a ''kireji'', or "cutting word", 17 '' on'' (phonetic units similar to syllables) in a 5, 7, 5 pattern, and a ''kigo'', or se ...
poets
Matsuo Bashō
born then was the most famous poet of the Edo period in Japan. During his lifetime, Bashō was recognized for his works in the collaborative '' haikai no renga'' form; today, after centuries of commentary, he is recognized as the greatest ma ...
and
Ihara Saikaku
was a Japanese poet and creator of the " floating world" genre of Japanese prose (''ukiyo-zōshi'').
Born as Hirayama Tōgo (平山藤五), the son of a wealthy merchant in Osaka, he first studied haikai poetry under Matsunaga Teitoku and later ...
, the
bunraku
(also known as ) is a form of traditional Japanese puppet theatre, founded in Osaka in the beginning of the 17th century, which is still performed in the modern day. Three kinds of performers take part in a performance: the or ( puppeteers ...
dramatist
Chikamatsu Monzaemon
was a Japanese dramatist of jōruri, the form of puppet theater that later came to be known as bunraku, and the live-actor drama, kabuki. The ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' has written that he is "widely regarded as the greatest Japanese dramatis ...
, and the painter
Ogata Kōrin
Ogata Kōrin ( ja, 尾形光琳; 1658 – June 2, 1716) was a Japanese landscape illustrator, lacquerer, painter, and textile designer of the Rinpa School.
Kōrin is best known for his ''byōbu'' folding screens, such as '' Irises'' and ' ...
. Masanobu was one of the most influential innovators of the ukiyo-e form, introducing the comic album, the pillar, two-colour, and lacquer prints, and popularizing Western-style perspective drawing. His career saw ukiyo-e evolve from its monochromatic origins to the verge of the full-colour ''
nishiki-e
is a type of Japanese multi-coloured woodblock printing; the technique is used primarily in ukiyo-e. It was invented in the 1760s, and perfected and popularized by the printmaker Suzuki Harunobu, who produced many ''nishiki-e'' prints between 17 ...
'' revolution of
Suzuki Harunobu's time.
Though less known to the public than masters such as
Sharaku
Tōshūsai Sharaku ( ja, 東洲斎 写楽; active 1794–1795) was a Japanese ukiyo-e print designer, known for his portraits of kabuki actors. Neither his true name nor the dates of his birth or death are known. His active career as a woodbloc ...
and
Hokusai
, known simply as Hokusai, was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist of the Edo period, active as a painter and printmaker. He is best known for the woodblock printing in Japan, woodblock print series ''Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji'', which includes the ...
, Masanobu has gained the regard of connoisseurs as one of the greatest ukiyo-e artists, held in esteem by Japanese collectors such as
Kiyoshi Shibui and
Seiichirō Takahashi, and Westerners such as
Ernest Fenollosa
Ernest Francisco Fenollosa (February 18, 1853 – September 21, 1908) was an American art historian of Japanese art, professor of philosophy and political economy at Tokyo Imperial University. An important educator during the modernization of Japa ...
,
Arthur Davison Ficke, and
James A. Michener.
Notes
References
Works cited
*
Further reading
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Okumura MasanobuEncyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Okumura Masanobu Biography*Meech, J. & Oliver, J. 2008. Designed for pleasure : the world of Edo Japan in prints and paintings. New York : Asia Society and Japanese Art Society of America.
The British Museum: Okumura Masanobu.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Okumura, Masanobu
1686 births
1764 deaths
Ukiyo-e artists
Japanese painters
18th-century Japanese people
18th-century Japanese artists
Religious artists