Four Admirers
One of the many pictorial subjects of Chinese origin adopted by the Kano school of painters, images of the Four Admirers portray beloved Chinese literary figures with the flower, and by extension the season, that each admired most. In this painting by Tsunenobu, a second-generation head of the Kano school’s Kobikichō branch in Edo (now Tokyo), the four literary heroes appear within a single pictorial space replete with seasonal, historical, and literary allusions.
At far right is the poet Lin Hejing (967–1028), known for admiring plum blossoms at the hermitage he shared with pet cranes. Nearby is Tao Yuanming (365–427), who famously wrote of gathering chrysanthemums at his country estate in autumn. The scholar Zhou Maoshu (1017–1073) relaxes on a boat surrounded by lotuses. At far left, Huang Tingjian (1045–1105) sits on the riverbank with a potted orchid at his side.
At far right is the poet Lin Hejing (967–1028), known for admiring plum blossoms at the hermitage he shared with pet cranes. Nearby is Tao Yuanming (365–427), who famously wrote of gathering chrysanthemums at his country estate in autumn. The scholar Zhou Maoshu (1017–1073) relaxes on a boat surrounded by lotuses. At far left, Huang Tingjian (1045–1105) sits on the riverbank with a potted orchid at his side.
Artwork Details
- 狩野常信筆 四愛図
- Title: Four Admirers
- Artist: Kano Tsunenobu (Japanese, 1636–1713)
- Period: Edo period (1615–1868)
- Date: late 17th–early 18th century
- Culture: Japan
- Medium: Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk
- Dimensions: Image: 21 5/16 x 46 in. (54.1 x 116.8 cm)
Overall with mounting: 67 5/8 x 55 1/2 in. (171.8 x 141 cm) - Classification: Paintings
- Credit Line: The Harry G. C. Packard Collection of Asian Art, Gift of Harry G. C. Packard, and Purchase, Fletcher, Rogers, Harris Brisbane Dick, and Louis V. Bell Funds, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, and The Annenberg Fund Inc. Gift, 1975
- Object Number: 1975.268.55
- Curatorial Department: Asian Art
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Kano Tsunenobu
17th–18th century
Kano Tsunenobu
17th century
Kano Tsunenobu
17th–18th century
Kano Tsunenobu
17th–18th century
Kano Tsunenobu
late 17th–early 18th century
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