Kōkei (康慶, active 1175–1200) was a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

sculptor Sculpture is the branch of the visual arts that operates in three dimensions. Sculpture is the three-dimensional art work which is physically presented in the dimensions of height, width and depth. It is one of the plastic arts. Durable sc ...

of the

Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the Genpei War, which saw the struggle bet ...

. He headed the

Kei school The was a Japanese school (style) of Buddhist sculpture which emerged in the early Kamakura period (c. 1200). Based in Nara, it was the dominant school in Buddhist sculpture in Japan into the 14th century, and remained influential until the 19th. ...

during the reconstructions of

Tōdai-ji is a Buddhist temple complex that was once one of the powerful Nanto Shichi Daiji, Seven Great Temples, located in the city of Nara, Nara, Nara, Japan. Though it was originally founded in the year 738 CE, Tōdai-ji was not opened until the year ...

and

Kōfuku-ji is a Buddhist temple that was once one of the powerful Seven Great Temples in the city of Nara, Japan. The temple is the national headquarters of the Hossō school. History Kōfuku-ji has its origin as a temple that was established in 669 b ...

. Although his works are still largely in the style established by

Jōchō Jōchō (定朝; died 1057 AD), also known as Jōchō Busshi, was a Japanese sculptor of the Heian period. He popularized the '' yosegi'' technique of sculpting a single figure out of many pieces of wood, and he redefined the canon of body propo ...

in the

Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japanese. ...

, Kōkei's sculpture show a move toward the greater

realism Realism, Realistic, or Realists may refer to: In the arts *Realism (arts), the general attempt to depict subjects truthfully in different forms of the arts Arts movements related to realism include: *Classical Realism *Literary realism, a move ...

that characterizes the works of his disciples

Unkei Unkei ( ja, 運慶; – 1223) was a Japanese sculptor of the Kei school, which flourished in the Kamakura period. He specialized in statues of the Buddha and other important Buddhist figures. Unkei's early works are fairly traditional, simil ...

Kaikei was a Japanese Busshi (sculptor of Buddha statue) of Kamakura period, known alongside Unkei. Because many busshi of the school have a name including ''kei'' (慶), his school is called ''Kei-ha'' (Kei school). Kaikei being also called Annami-da ...

, and Jōkei.

Career

Kōkei was a direct descendant, both genetically and artistically, of

, a master sculptor of the

. He was likely the organizer of the

, which comprised his son, disciples, and assistants. Notable members of Kōkei's school include

, and Jōkei.Mason 188. Today, Kōkei is best known for leading teams involved in the 1188–1189 reconstruction of the

and

, temples in

Nara The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an " independent federal agency of the United States government within the executive branch", charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It i ...

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 ...

. He and his assistants were placed in charge of work at the Nanendō (Southern Octagonal Hall). Statues by Kōkei there include the Four Heavenly Guardians and the Six Patriarchs of Hossō. The centerpiece is the giant Fukūkenjaku Kannon, which he created in 1188. This was a replacement for an original created in 746 and lost in a temple fire.Mason 189. First-hand details of Kōkei's talent and personality come from the diary of

Kujō Kanezane , also known as , is the founder of the Kujō family (at the encouragement of Minamoto no Yoritomo), although some sources cite Fujiwara no Morosuke (908-960) as its founder. Kanezane organised the compilation of the Kitano Tenjin Engi, the histo ...

, who became the

Fujiwara Fujiwara (, written: 藤原 lit. "''Wisteria'' field") is a Japanese surname. (In English conversation it is likely to be rendered as .) Notable people with the surname include: ; Families * The Fujiwara clan and its members ** Fujiwara no Kamatari ...

chieftain in 1186, and thus took over as supervisor of the temple reconstructions. Kanezane paints the artist as a greatly talented and morally sound man, but also as someone who did not refrain from questioning Kanezane's decisions.Grapard 230.

Style

Kōkei's works are still largely in the Heian mold established by his ancestor, Jōchō. For example, Kōkei's Fukūkenjaku Kannon follows Jōchō's

canon of proportions An artistic canon of body proportions (or aesthetic canon of proportion), in the sphere of visual arts, is a formally codified set of criteria deemed mandatory for a particular artistic style of figurative art. The word ''canon'' () was first us ...

: widely spread legs provide a base for a triangular figure with a square-shaped face. Likewise, the folds of drapery still follow a conventional geometric pattern.Paine 110. However, Kōkei does show signs of the emerging

that characterizes the art of the Kei school. He uses crystal inlays to give a more lifelike sheen to the Kannon's eyes and '' byakugo'' (

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

: ''

urna In Buddhist art and culture, the Urna (more correctly ūrṇā or ūrṇākośa (Pāli uṇṇa), and known as in Chinese) is a spiral or circular dot placed on the forehead of Buddhist images as an auspicious mark. It symbolizes a third eye, w ...

''). The details of the face and clothing are more deeply carved and realized than those in Jōchō's work. Individual hairs are carefully carved into the figure's head. The result is a figure that seems more corporeal than the ephemeral-looking works of the previous 150 years.

Notes

References

* Grapard, Allan G. (1992). ''The Protocol of the Gods: A Study of the Kasuga Cult in Japanese History''. Berkeley: University of California Press. * Mason, Penelope (2005). ''History of Japanese Art''. 2nd ed, rev. by Dinwiddie, Donald. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Education Inc. * Noma, Seiroku (2003). ''The Arts of Japan: Ancient and Medieval''. Kodansha International. * Paine, Robert Treat, and Soper, Alexander (1981). ''The Art and Architecture of Japan''. 3rd ed. Penguin Books Ltd. {{DEFAULTSORT:Kokei Kei school Japanese Buddhists Japanese sculptors 12th-century births 13th-century deaths