Japanese 17th Century Two Panel Screen, Pine with Gold Dust

Kano School painting of a bamboo grove with blooming flowers and gold dust mists. Painted in mineral pigments on mulberry paper with gold dust and a silk brocade border.

Japanese six-panel screen: Battle at Uji Bridge, the first battle at Uji was in 1180 and it marked the start of the Heike Wars. The Genji troops crossed the...

Sesshu-style painting in ink on mulberry paper with gold dust accents and a silk brocade border.

Kano School painting in mineral pigments on mulberry paper with heavy gold leaf and a silk brocade border made of antique monk's robes.

A pair of 17th Century (Late 1600s) Japanese Edo screens made of 12-panels. This folding silk screen is painted on a gold leaf background. It has a...

Hawks on plum and pine Soga Nichokuan (active circa 1625-1660) Pair of six-fold screens. Ink, mineral pigments, gofun, gold and speckled gold l...

Anonymous Late 17th century Puppy & Kittens A six-panel Japanese screen. Ink, color, gofun, gold-leaf and gold-fleck on paper. A medium sized late 17th century Japanese screen fe...

Kaiho Yusetsu (1598-1677) Tiger and Dragon Early Edo Period, Circa 1650 A Pair of Six-fold Japanese Screens. Ink and slight color on paper. Dimensions: Each screen: H. 171 cm x W. 380 cm (67.5’’ x 149.5’’) In this pair of early Edo period Japanese screens a group of tigers prowl in a bamboo grove whipped with fierce wind, while a dragon claws through clouds and mist. The dragon embodies elemental qualities - looming out of the mist, the coils of its body disappearing in the clouds. The dragon is calling for rain, symbolizing spring which is considered the fountain of life. On the other side, the tigers calls for the wind, symbolizing autumn which is considered the end of life. Tigers were familiar motifs within Japanese art from ancient times though the animals were imaginary to the people in the 17th century. While dragons and tigers are usually associated as sacred and ferocious, in this painting, both animals have rather amusing expressions. The tigers appear to glare at the dragon with cat-like eyes, and the look on the swirling dragon’s face appears almost affectionate - lending a playful flair to an otherwise magnificent theme. The tiger and dragon are cosmological symbols of the balancing forces in the world. Screens such as this were originally meant to express the fluctuating nature of the world. For Japanese in the early Edo period, they likely suggested the powers of the cosmos. In Japan the tiger and dragon motif was originally absorbed into the circles of Zen monasteries before spreading into the secular world. The theme especially appealed to the military classes with the Kano school, the official painters to the Shogun and the samurai, being the leading contributors. The painter of this pair of screens, Kaiho Yusetsu (1598-1677), was closely patronized by the third Shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu. In his later years he worked with Kano school artists...