Discussion

Magnolias

Magnolias are flowering trees comprised of from 210 to 340 species worldwide.

Various species are found naturally in eastern North America, Central America, the West Indies, and some in South America. The main location, however, is in east, south, and southeast Asia, including Japan.

The Southern Magnolia, shown above, is an evergreen tree found in North America. Its leaves, up to 7¾ inches long, are stiff, smoothed edged, and two-toned. The leaf tops are a glossy dark green; its bottoms are yellow-brown.

The Southern Magnolia produces fragrant, showy, white blossoms in the late spring that can be as much as 11¾ inches across.

It produces fruit with bright red seeds.

When most people in this country think of magnolias, the Southern Magnolia is likely to be what they have in mind. Not all magnolias look quite like that. My painting subject this week is different in many ways.

Purple Magnolia (Magnolia liliiflora)

The Purple Magnolia, called shi mokuren by the Japanese, originated in China and was imported into Japan centuries ago. It has many common names besides purple magnolia, among them Mulan magnolia, red magnolia, lily magnolia, tulip magnolia, and woody-orchid. Because it was widely introduced into Western countries from Japan, it is also called the Japanese magnolia.

There are several differences from the Southern Magnolia shown before. It is not as large; shorter than most other magnolias. Because of that, it is sometimes called a shrub. The purple magnolia is slow growing and rarely reaches a height of greater than 13 feet. There are no leaves in the photo. The purple magnolia is deciduous; it drops all of its leaves in the fall and winter. Flowers appear in the spring before the leaves come out in late spring to the summer.

Leaves are green on both sides, but the top sides are a slightly darker green then the bottom sides which are also slightly fuzzy. They are 4 to 8 inches long.

The difference that is perhaps the most noticeable at first glance is that the blossoms are purple.

A variant called M. liliiflora Nigra has much darker purple blossoms.

Purple magnolia trees may have several blossom cycles throughout the summer. Their blossoms never fully open up like the Southern Magnolia and most other magnolia blossoms do. A tight cluster of stamens lies at the center of the blossoms. They soon transform into fruit with seeds before the tepals fall away.

Purple magnolia seeds are black.

The tepals of many magnolia species are edible, including the purple magnolia. Here is a purple magnolia/avocado salad example using fresh tepals.

Another way to use magnolia tepals is to pickle them and then use them to add flavor to soups and other dishes.

Japanese Nightingale

An element in my demonstration painting this week is a bird called the Japanese nightingale, a type of bush warbler. The Japanese name for it is uguisu.

Artwork

Katsushika Hokusai (1760 – 1849)

Hokusai produced thousands of paintings and many series of ukiyo-e prints. His landscape uniyo-e, the iconic Great Wave off Kanagawa, is recognized worldwide. One of his series of kachō-ga (pictures of birds and flowers) included this print of Paddy Bird and Magnolia. (1835).

Sakai Hōitsu (1761 – 1829)

Hōitsu was the son of a daimyō, lord of Himeji Castle in Harima Province. He took an interest in art, and moving to Kyōto, he studied with the Kanō school. He studied in other schools, too, before finally becoming a Rinpa School artist, heavily influenced by Ogata Kōrin's (1658 – 1716) style of art. He is credited with restoring the popularity of Kōrin's art by copying some of his greatest works and painting some of his own originals in that style. He is noted for his woodblock prints, too. His Cherry and Magnolia was produced in 1907.

Imao Keinen (1845 – 1924)

Keinen studied in multiple schools of art and became a professor in the Kyōto School of Art. In 1892, he published an album of prints titled Keinen Kachō Gafu which established his reputation. He became an Imperial Household Artist in 1904 and eventually became a member of the Imperial Academy of Fine Arts. Keinen was part of the shin-hanga movement to restore traditional subjects, techniques, and values to Japanese print art in the early 20th century. His Lily Magnolia & Lesser Sulphur-crested Cackatoo print below was included in Keinen Kachō Gafu.