Week 2

Discussion

From a painting by Hasegawa Tōhaku (1539 – 1610). See discussion.

Shikunshi Subjects: Bamboo Unit 1

Shikunshi Subjects

There are four painting subjects that have had special significance in Chinese art since the Song Dynasty (960–1279). Each of these subjects, all plants, is associated with a season of the year. They also became associated with positive attributes. From China, the significance of these four subjects spread to Korea and then to Japan where they were called shikunshi (literally: Four Gentlemen).

These are the shikunshi subjects.

Traditionally, the shikunshi subjects are among the earliest taught to beginning sumi-e students because among them, all of the basic sumi brush strokes and techniques are used. They can be fairly easy to paint for beginners, but they can, also, be among the most challenging for experienced painters to master.

My major emphasis this semester is on the shikunshi subjects. It will be a review for some of you and an introduction for others. Two weeks will devoted to each of the subjects, beginning with bamboo this week and the next.

Bamboo

Bamboo is a type of grass. Worldwide, there are 115 bamboo genera in which there are about 1,400 bamboo species, divided into three clades or tribes; groups with common ancestors. The largest bamboo, commonly called dragon bamboo (Dendrocalamus sinicus), is found growing from southern China to Laos.

Dragon bamboo can grow to 151 feet tall, have a culm up to 14.5 inches in diameter, and weigh as much as 990 pounds. Culm walls can be up to 2.3 inches thick. A single plant has up to 100 culms.

This is a cross section of a bamboo culm (trunk or stalk).

More giant bamboo are located in the famous Bamboo Grove at Arashiyama, district of Kyoto, near the Tenryu-ji Temple. Also called the Sagano Bamboo Forest, the grove covers over 6 square miles. Most of the bamboo there are mōsō bamboo or tortoise-shell bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis).

These bamboo grow to only 91 feet tall. The foliage of tortoise-shell bamboo is located at the top of the culms.

There are numerous types of bamboo flowers depending on the species. This is just one of them.

Fertilization is through wind-blown pollination. In some areas, the fruit produced is called bamboo rice. It is edible.

Few bamboo seeds are viable in the wild. Most bamboo grow new sprouts from underground roots rather than from seeds. The shoots of tortoise-shell bamboo, like the shoots of many bamboo species, are edible.

Rich in vitamins and minerals, tortoise-shell bamboo shoots are one of the most commonly used species in Asian cooking.

There are a lot of commercial uses for bamboo. Some of the least obvious ones are for making paper and wearable fabrics as soft as silk. More common uses are for furniture, roofing material, fencing poles, floor tiles, ceiling panels, scaffolding, frames for doors and windows, and window blinds. It is also being increasingly seen as a viable building material.

Artwork

Sesshū Tōyō (1420 – 1506)

Sesshū was already a respected painter of the Muromachi Period (1333 to 1573) when he joined a diplomatic mission to China. On his return to Japan after three years, what he had learned in China had made him one of Japan's greatest painting masters. His influence was widespread and lasted for centuries. His best known works were landscapes, though he painted other subjects, too. This hanging scroll, Kingfisher and Bamboo, was long thought to be one of Sesshū's works, but it was recently discovered to be a forgery by an unknown 19th century artist. It is still pretty good, and at least gives an idea of how Sesshū painted.

Hasegawa Tōhaku (1539 – 1610)

Tōhaku began painting at an early age before studying with the prestigious Kanō School. At the same time, he studied the works of other artists, leading to the development of his own style of sumi-e. Coming under the influence of Sesshū, he became an ardent follower and tried to establish himself as an official artistic successor to Sesshū. This is his Bamboo and Pine byōbu.

Katsushika Hokusai (1760 – 1849)

Hokusai is another painter renowned for his landscapes, though he, too, painted many other subjects, His most famous works were ukiyo-e, woodblock prints of the floating world. The 1831 print below titled Moso Finding a Bamboo Shoot is part of an unnamed print series. The name of the man in the painting, Moso, is the same as the Japanese name for Japan's mōsō bamboo.

Nakabayashi Chikutō (1776 - 1853)

Chikutō began painting when he was only 14 years old by copying artwork possessed by a wealthy merchant and art collector. By the age of 20, he opened his own studio in a small temple. In 1803, he moved to Kyōto to pursue an interest in classical literature. He became a member of a circle with an interest in philosophy and nanga (southern-style) painting. He is most remembered today for his illustrated art books. The bird and bamboo picture was published in his book, Yūsai gafu, in 1831.

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