Scenes from the Eight Views of the Xiao and Xiang Rivers

Unkoku Tōeki Japanese

Not on view

This pair of screens, invoking the Chinese landscape around the Xiao and Xiang Rivers and the traditional couplets associated with its representation, was painted by the second son of Unkoku Tōgan (1547–1618), heir to the artistic legacy and patrons of Sesshû Tōyō (1420–?1506) in western Japan. Regional schools like the Unkoku workshop were patronized by powerful local daimyo—in this instance, the Mōri in Suō and Hagi—who brought Kyoto-trained artists to their strongholds in the provinces to underscore their cultural and military authority. The Unkoku style was characterized by a strong, tensile ink line, a composition based on a balance of wash and large unpainted areas, and a shallow spatial representation.

Scenes from the Eight Views of the Xiao and Xiang Rivers, Unkoku Tōeki (Japanese, 1591–1644), Pair of six-panel screens; ink and gold on paper, Japan

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Scenes from the Eight Views of the Xiao and Xiang Rivers, Unkoku Tōeki (Japanese, 1591–1644), Pair of six-panel screens; ink and gold on paper, Japan
Scenes from the Eight Views of the Xiao and Xiang Rivers, Unkoku Tōeki (Japanese, 1591–1644), Pair of six-panel screens; ink and gold on paper, Japan

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