Past Exhibitions
- Tosa Mitsuoki and Early Modern Japanese Yamato-e Painting
- June 14, 2016 - July 18, 2016
The Tosa school of painting, preferred by Japan’s aristocracy, specialized in yamato-e (“Japanese style painting”) depicting Japanese themes in delicate brushwork with brilliant colors and gold. Tosa school paintings contrasted with the often Chinese-themed monochrome ink paintings of the Kano school, who were patronized for centuries by the shogunate and warrior class.
The Tosa headed the imperial painting bureau from late 1400s until the late 1500s, at which time they lost this status due to a break in the lineage. In the late 1600s, the Tosa school regained its former status under the auspices of master painter Tosa Mitsuoki (1617–1691) and retained it through the rest of the Edo period (1615 –1868). This exhibition features works by Mitsuoki and other yamato-e painters of his day.
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