''Landscape by Sesshū'' is one of the most securely

authenticated Authentication (from ''authentikos'', "real, genuine", from αὐθέντης ''authentes'', "author") is the act of proving an assertion, such as the identity of a computer system user. In contrast with identification, the act of indicating a ...

works of the Japanese

Muromachi period The , also known as the , is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate ( or ), which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi ...

artist Sesshū (1420–1506). It is an

ink wash Ink wash painting ( zh, t=水墨畫, s=水墨画, p=shuǐmòhuà) is a type of Chinese ink brush painting which uses washes of black ink, such as that used in East Asian calligraphy, in different concentrations. It emerged during the Tang dynasty ...

in the private collection of the Ōhara family in

Kurashiki is a city located in Okayama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 478,651 and a population density of 1300 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Kurashiki is located in the south-central part of Okay ...

Okayama Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Okayama Prefecture has a population of 1,826,059 (1 February 2025) and has a geographic area of 7,114 Square kilometre, km2 (2,746 sq mi). Okayama Prefecture ...

, Japan. The

hanging scroll A hanging scroll is one of the many traditional ways to display and exhibit East Asian painting and calligraphy. They are different from handscrolls, which are narrower and designed to be viewed flat on a table. Hanging scrolls are generally i ...

has been designated a

National Treasure A national treasure is a structure, artifact, object or cultural work that is officially or popularly recognized as having particular value to the nation, or representing the ideals of the nation. The term has also been applied to individuals or ...

Painting

Executed in the or carefully delineated (as opposed to or 'splashed ink') style, the landscape is thought to be one of the artist's final works. The vertical accent of two pine trees takes the place of a central mountain peak, while the distant shore has a "modern" horizon line unusual for the period. The zigzag path leading to a pavilion on a lookout point contributes to the painting's considerable "spatial depth". Journeying along the path are an old wanderer accompanied by a young attendant, recurrent figures in Sesshū's landscapes. The contrast between the dilute ink of the sea and sky and the more concentrated rocks and vegetation, and the expressive use of the background tone of the paper, helps give the painting its "impression of extreme intensity". Touches of colour include green wash over the pine needles and of orange in the buildings; ink added to the pale yellow wash on the path almost gives the effect of

shadows A shadow is a dark area on a surface where light from a light source is blocked by an object. In contrast, shade occupies the three-dimensional volume behind an object with light in front of it. The cross-section of a shadow is a two-dimensiona ...

cast by the rocks.

Inscriptions

To the left are Sesshū's signature and seal, while above are two poetic inscriptions or , by friends of the painter. The one on the right is by , a

Zen Zen (; from Chinese: ''Chán''; in Korean: ''Sŏn'', and Vietnamese: ''Thiền'') is a Mahayana Buddhist tradition that developed in China during the Tang dynasty by blending Indian Mahayana Buddhism, particularly Yogacara and Madhyamaka phil ...

priest with connections, like Sesshū, with the

Ōuchi clan was one of the most powerful and important families in Western Japan during the reign of the Ashikaga shogunate in the 14th to 16th centuries. Their domains, ruled from the castle town of Yamaguchi in the western tip of Honshu island, compris ...

. That on the left by

Ryōan Keigo was a Japanese Zen Buddhist monk and diplomat in the Muromachi period.Goodrich, L. Carrington ''et al.'' (1976) ''Dictionary of Ming biography, 1368-1644,'' Vol. II, pp. 1149-1150./ref> He was the chief envoy of a 1511–1513 mission sent by ...

is dated 1507, the year after the painter's death.

嶮崖径折繞羊腸Mountain precipice, the winding path twists along,
白髪蒼頭歩似徉a grey-haired man, his servant wandering on foot,
旧日韋村枯竹短from distant times tanned-leather village, withered bamboo stumps,
前朝簫寺老松長close at hand flute temple, towering old pines,
東漂西泊舟千里to the east afloat, west at anchor, boats to journey a thousand li,
北郭南涯夢一場northern districts, southern shores united in a dream.
我亦相従欲帰去I too would follow on this journey,
青山聳処是家郷where blue mountains rise up, my family village.
牧松周省書by Bokushō Shūshō

詩画尋常欲遣情Poetry and painting inspire pleasant feelings,
人間何地卜長生but where do men live for long?
層巒畳嶂剣鋩矗In the mountain range peaks jut out like daggers,
極浦廻塘屏障横far away a curving bay separated off,
径路岩隈蟠繚繞a narrow path winds between rocks,
楼台樹蔭聳崢嶸towers and trees soar up high.
牧松遣韻雪舟逝Bokushō has left his poem, Sesshū too has passed away,
天末残涯春夢驚their loss disturbs the landscape and my dreams.
永正丁印上巳前一日 Eishō 4, third month, second day
大明皇華前南褝了庵八十三載書于雲谷寓舎by Ryōan, imperial envoy to the Ming, formerly of
Nanzen-ji , or Zuiryusan Nanzen-ji, formerly , is a Zen Buddhist temple in Kyoto, Japan. Emperor Kameyama established it in 1291 on the site of his previous detached palace. It is also the headquarters of the Nanzen-ji branch of Rinzai Zen. The precinct ...
, aged 83, at the Unkoku-an

History

The landscape was known in the seventeenth century, when it was copied by

Kanō Tan'yū was a Japanese painter of the Kanō school. One of the foremost Kanō painters of the Tokugawa period, many of the best known Kanō works today are by Tan'yū. Biography His original given name was Morinobu; he was the eldest son of K ...

. Subsequently disappearing from the record, it turned up in a "curio dealer's shop" in

Kyoto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese language, 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 t ...

in 1906. Sold for ten thousand

yen The is the official currency of Japan. It is the third-most traded currency in the foreign exchange market, after the United States dollar and the euro. It is also widely used as a third reserve currency after the US dollar and the euro. T ...

, it was later acquired by

Magosaburō Ōhara was a Japanese businessman and philanthropist. He was born in Kurashiki, Okayama. He studied at Waseda University but left Waseda before graduation. Later he became the most influential person in Kansai business community. Founded He founded � ...

for the sum of 160,000 yen. It remains today in the private collection of the Ōhara Family.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Landscape by Sesshu (Ohara Collection) Japanese paintings National Treasures of Japan Landscape paintings

Painting

Inscriptions

History

See also

References