Japanese scroll of tiger in bamboo grove

Enchanting Japanese Showa period six-panel byobu screen titled "Bamboo Forest-Immortal Together". The large screen depicts six manchurian cranes in a ...

Bamboo in moonlight Gamo Rakan (1784-1866) Hanging scroll, ink on silk. Dimensions: Scroll: 201 cm x 58 cm Image: 137 cm x 45 cm In this early 19th century work by Gamo Rakan a light ink wash applied to the silk background silhouettes the moon and suggests the atmosphere of early evening. Even though it is a literati subject, Rakan’s bamboo is quite realistic with a strong decorative style. The painting finds its inspiration from Chinese Ming dynasty painters who often used a single-tone, jet black stroke to emphasize the calligraphic nature of bamboo. In a different era, decorative would have been seen as somewhat unrefined. But increasingly in the Edo period, it was the hallmark of high style. The Japanese people, in particular the rising merchant class, had gradually become apathetic toward the traditional Sesshu and Kano schools of painting. Chinese professional and amateur painters living in the port of Nagasaki during the 18th century had a profound effect on Japanese painting and the freshness of their style and its decorative appeal contributed greatly to its popularity. Gamo Rakan’s teacher, Tani Buncho...

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 Four Panel Screen: Banana Grove, early Showa period (late 1920s-1930s) painting of life-size fruiting banana trees in a style that ...

18th century Japanese scroll of poppies. Edo Period (early 18th century) Japanese painting of poppies with lilies in the background. Seal on the lower...

A fine matching pair of hanging scrolls ink on paper mounted in green brocade borders circa Edo period (17-18th century). The Kano school painting depicts wild geese in the reeds by the margin of water, a popular subject borrowed from the Chinese tradition. Both painting were signed as Tanyu with a red seal of Morinobu, his birth name. The storage box is also present and was inscribed with the title Painting of Geese and Reeds and Kano Tanyu...