Demonstration

Saikan senro Painting Subjects

This week's demonstration painting, saikan senro; a combination of rocks, narcissus, plum blossoms, and bamboo in a single composition; requires several painting techniques. We have already discussed a little how to do narcissi in Lesson Module 1 and rocks (iwa) in Lesson Module 3. Both bamboo and plum blossoms are big subjects, but for this lesson, we are only going to touch on just what is needed this week.

Shikunshi (The Four Gentlemen): It is worth noting that two of the plants in saikan senro, bamboo and plum, are among the four shikunshi subjects. The other two are chrysanthemums and orchids. Those four subjects, painted individually or in the same composition, are among the first learned by sumi-e beginners but the last mastered by experienced artists.

Sasa Bamboo with Kaijihō Leaves

Sasa is the name of a type of bamboo that retains remnants of husks around the stalk through its entire life. It is the type of bamboo in this week's demonstration painting. For those who wish to practice calligraphy, the kanji character below is for sasa. It requires 10 strokes to paint.

This week's demonstration uses the kaijihō technique for painting bamboo leaves. Kaijihō leaves are generally downward pointing, and there are several named variations. Mokkotsu-hō (boneless) strokes are used for all of the leaves, but stems when present are painted with lines (senbyō-hō). Most of the leaves shown below are painted with dark sumi (nōboku), but sometimes medium (chūboku) or light (tanboku) sumi is appropriate.

Here are what kaijihō leaves look like.

Kejigata (ケ字形) = 3 leaves

Kaijigata (介字形) = 4 leaves

Kaijigata (介字形) = 7 leaves

Bunjikuzushi (分字くずし) = 5 leaves

Plum Blossoms

Here are several examples of plum blossoms. Paint the petals first, one stroke per petal using chūboku (medium) sumi. Then with nōboku (dark) sumi, paint the stamens. The stems come last. Note that the blossoms are shown at different angles.

Saikan senro Demonstration Painting

Here is my painting for the week.