by Maruyama Okyo
A pair of six-fold screens
Ink on paper
Proportions: 160.3 x 353.3 cm (each)
Edo Period (dated 1776)
Important Cultural Property
(Enko-ji Temple, Kyoto)
|
|
According to their inscriptions, these screens were painted during the summer of 1776 at Enko-ji Temple, which still ownes them today. The artist Maruyama Okyo (1732-1795) was forty-four years old at the time. The same year, Okyo painted a screen of blooming wisteria in color on gold-foiled paper, combining simplified brush strokes for the tree trunks with fine detailing for the flowers and leaves. These outstanding works mark 1776 as the year in which Okyo entered his prime.
The right-hand screens represent a misty bamboo grove in the rain, while the left-hand screens illustrate another bamboo grove blown by the breeze. The two sccenes convey a delicate contrast between rest and motion.
The composition of the bamboo takes into consideration the folded angles that are unique to folding screnes. The wet ink tones and rythmic brush strokes express these summertime bamboo groves with delicacy and sophistocation.
|
