Outstanding Antique Scrolls
These Scrolls represent some of the very best in scroll art and design.


                                                                                                                         Kimura Gaitetsu & Koushou

Oi Matsu no Asahi-The old pine and rising sun.

A magnificent scroll that has now been beautifully  restored.

Inscription:
Dated December of the 8th year of Showa ( 1933) celebrating the 70th birthday for Nobuyoshi
Signature: Koushou Senshi

The Poem is by his friend Kimura Gaitetsu

Seals: Top seal: Kimura Gaitetsu Bottom seal: Koushou

A box covered in Antique Japanese Kimono Silk inside and out, has been made for this special scroll.

£375

4: Signed Baiitsu Yamamoto Ryo sha and sealed 1783-1856 68x13.2

Mandarins with Box £750-Average auction price for this artist is between 2 and 3 thousand dollars

Yamamoto Baiitsu [also known as Yamamoto Shinryo; Baiitsu; Baika; Gyokuzen]

(b Nagoya, 1783; d Nagoya, 1856). Japanese painter. He was the son of a sculptor, who worked for the Owari clan. He probably first studied with Yamamoto Ranei, a minor Kano school artist, who later switched to  painting ukiyoe (‘pictures of the floating world’). It is said that another early teacher when Baiitsu was a child was Yamada Kyujo (1747–93), a prominent exponent of literati (Jap. Nanga or Bunjinga) painting in Nagoya, who died when Baiitsu was only ten years old. However, it is more likely that Baiitsu studied under Cho Gessho (1770–1832), a Shijo school painter and haikupoet who was a pupil of Kyujo. Baiitsu also claimed to have been influenced by the Nagoya artist Tanaka Totsugen (1767–1823), founder of the Yamatoe revival (Fukko Yamatoe) movement. The most formative influence on Baiitsu’s approach to painting was that of his mentor, the merchant and collector Kamiya Ten’yu (1710–1801), who also patronized other literati painters, including Nakabayashi Chikuto (1776–1853). Baiitsu studied and copied Ten’yu’s collection of Chinese paintings of the Yuan (1279–1368) to Qing (1644–1911) periods, a practice he continued throughout his career and it is that influence that has given this scroll a slightly Chinese similarity. He was also instructed by Ten'yu in Chinese painting methodology and, under his guidance, developed an interest in a variety of literati pursuits, including the collecting and connoisseurship of Chinese painting, the preparing of tea in Chinese style (sencha) and the writing of Japanese classical verse (waka) and Chinese-style poetry. This wonderful scroll encompasses all of this formative education and is an outstanding example of Baiitsu's creative ability.

 
 

2: 'Image of a pair of Cockerels' signed by Shouzui (or Shozui) himself (Shouzui Jitei,  inscribed by himself, Shouzui) in the spring of 1929. That is what has been written on the artists box for this outstanding and very powerful depiction of Cockerels. The quality of the art is quite amazing and the colours are fresh and vibrant. This scroll has been exceptionally well cared for and no wonder. Its a jewel.

 Price £495

This is a wonderful painting of a Cockerel and family in the farmyard.

Year of the Rooster - 1921, 1933, 1945, 1957, 1969, 1981, 1993, 2005, 2017, 2029, 2041, 2053

The rooster is almost the epitome of fidelity and punctuality. For ancestors who had no alarm clocks, the rooster's crowing was significant, as it could awaken people to get up and start to work. Another symbolic meaning the rooster carries is exorcising evil spirits. People used to worship ancestors and believed in fortune telling for a long time.

Roosters are considered to be honest, bright, communicative, ambitious and warm-hearted. They might be enthusiastic about something quickly, but soon might be impassive. They have strong self-respect and seldom rely on others. As most roosters are born pretty or handsome, they might have several loves in their lives, treating each lover seriously. If they can overcome their arrogance, they will make more progress.

Here are some images I took of wonderful Cockerels and hens early 2011-Click for a bigger image

 

 

 

Japanese Crow
It has the signature of  HYAKUSUI HIRAFUKU.  1877-1933.

A truly outstanding work in completely original condition. I can have this scroll restored, remounted etc but I felt that the scroll was in a state that was entirely acceptable bearing in mind the importance of this artist. The light creases will mostly come out  when hung with Fuchin Scroll Weights, that should be fine.  Length 70.7" / Width 18.5" with the original artists box signed inside as well. Date circa 1920 £450-(Please note that I will take some of the creases out before selling)

Hirafuku Hyakusui(平福百穂, 1877 - October 30, 1933) was a Japanese Painter, son of the painter Suian Hirafuku,. He was the uncle of Kenji Tomiki, the creator of Tomiki Aikido system. He studied under the great painter Kawabata Gyokusho (1842-1913)-see notes below.

Hyakusui Hirafuku Born in Kakunodate in Akita Prefecture. After graduating from the Tokyo School of Fine Arts, he founded the "Museikai" society and set out to revolutionize Nihon-ga (Japanese style painting) with his naturalistic style of Nihon-ga which incorporated Western realism

In 1899 Hyakusui Hirafuku,  graduated from the Japanese-style painting division of the Tokyo School of Fine Arts. He exhibited paintings at the Bunten and Teiten, but he also turned his hand to lithographs, woodblock prints and mixed-media illustrations. He contributed to many early 20th century magazines, such as Hôsun. He published Fuji isshû - A Tour of Fuji in 1907 and Sansui zuien ki - Travel notes on mountains and sea in 1914. In the later part of his career he was primarily a painter.
Notes;

Collections containing  works by this artist: Japan
Mie Prefectural Art Museum, Tsu City

National Museum of Modern Art Kyoto (MOMAK), Kyoto
Miyagi Museum of Art, Sendai

National Museum of Modern Art Tokyo (MOMAT), Tokyo

Previous auction price for this artist

Mainichi Auction /Dec 13, 2008
Price: €998.23 - $1300 US
Books containing  references and works by this artist:

Kusamakura and Buncho. Translated by Umeji Sasaki. Illustrated by Hyakusui Hirafuku. [Hardcover]

Soseki (Umeji Sasaki, tr.) Natsume (Author

Hirafuku Hyakusui sobyoshu (Japanese Edition) [Tankobon Hardcover]

Hyakusui Hirafuku

Hyakusui Hirafuku (Author)

Kaiso Hirafuku Hyakusui Sensei (Japanese Edition) [Unknown Binding]

Ikuyo Matsumoto (Author)

Notes of Hyakusai Hirafuku's teacher:

Kawabata Gyokusho (1842-1913) was born in Kyoto City Takakura Nijo Kawaramachi on April 14, 1842 (The 13th year of Tenpo) as Ryunosuke, the son of Kawabata Sahei a lacquer artisan who did maki-e. He learned Chinese poetry from his father and as well as the craft of maki-e. Around 1852 (the fifth year of Kaei) Gyokusho learns Maruyama painting style from Nakajima Raisho and learned Chinese and Japanese philosophy, culture, and history as well as interpreting art from Oda Kaisen. In 1866 (the second year of Keio) Gyokusho moves to Edo and makes a living making kaleidoscopes and woodblock print fold outs for magazines and learns Western style painting.  Gyokusho at that time earns his first award at the Naikoku kangyo Exhibiton under the naikoku Kaiga kyoushinkai. His skills were admired by Okakura Tenshin and asks Kawabata Gyokusho to be his school, the Tokyo Arts Academy (Now Tokyo University of the Fine Arts) to be its professor and serves from 1888 (21st year of Meiji) until 1912 (the 45th year of Meiji). Gyokusho submitted art to the Nihon Kaiga kyoka who were a group who did contemporary works as well as the Nihon Bijutsu Kyokai who were mainly for the older styles. As being a center figure of the older school group he was selected to paint the cedar doors of the imperial palace in 1888. His works combine the Maruyama school with Western realist styles and during his latter years he experimented with Bunjin styles. In the latter part of the 19th century, Kawabata Gyokusho participates with the Imperial Art board (Teishitsy gigei in) and in 1909 establishes his own art school. In 1897 he is part of the board for the historical preservation of temples and shrines as well as a member who examines and appraises items to be selected to become national treasures. He was known for his efforts in preserving ancient art and had wide influence within artists circles. Gyokusho was also known by his other names, Kyotei and Sho-ou (his choice for Sho-ou, the character shou if the sections of the character are separated is the same as Gyokusho) His son Kawabata Shigeaki was also an artist including Kawabata Gyokusetsu (a member of the family) Shigeaki inherits the school and becomes the second generation. His Grandson, Kawabata Minoru was an artist specializing in oil paintings and was in New York as a researcher, painter, and teacher at the New York School for Social Research.

Note on Crow Mythology in Japan:Yata-garasu is a giant three-legged crow that played an important role in Japan’s creation myth. The son of the Sun Goddess, he led the descendants of the sun Goddess to the homeland of the Japanese in Nara Prefecture. Yata-garasu is the featured on the emblems worn by the Japanese national soccer team


 

Kano Tanyu (1602-1674) A view of Fujisan through morning clouds painted c 1640 in his ink style of the Muromachi period. This was one of the official artists of the Tokugawa Iyeasu Shogunate.

Before:

After
This has been rebacked and restored . We then remounted onto suitable silk mounts in grey and used  Ivory scroll ends from the same period. It comes with a Pauwlana box Tombako and a Niju Bako- double lacquered wood box..

NIJU BAKO or Double Box. The inner box is plain while the outer box is lacquered. Only used for very rare scrolls.

Kano Tanyu (1602-1674) A view of Fujisan through morning clouds painted c 1640 in his ink style of the Muromachi period

£1200

 

 

 

Example of a Tombako and Niju Bako

Kanō Tan'yū (狩野 探幽?, 4 March 1602 - 4 November 1674) was one of the foremost Japanese painters of the Kanō school. His original given name was Morinobu; he was the eldest son of Kanō Takanobu and grandson of Kanō Eitoku. Many of the most famous and widely known Kanō works today are by Tan'yū.

In 1617, Tan'yū was appointed by the Tokugawa shogunate to become one of the shogunate's official artists. Over the following years, he was given many highly prestigious commissions. Over the 1620s and '30s, he created a number of large-scale works for Edo Castle, Nijō Castle, Osaka Castle, Nagoya Castle, and Nikkō Tōshō-gū.

Prolific in a variety of painting styles, Tan'yū's most famous works are probably those he produced for these large-scale commissions. They are screens and panels, prime examples of the Momoyama style, depicting natural subjects such as tigers, birds and plants, in bright colors and with extensive use of gold leaf. The gold, often used to represent clouds, water, or other background elements, would reflect what little light was available indoors, brightening a castle's dark rooms.

Tan'yū was also accomplished, however, in monochrome ink painting based on the prototypical style of the Muromachi period, yamato-e compositions in a style similar to that of the Tosa school, and Chinese style scrolls. His most famous yamato-e work is a narrative handscroll depicting the life of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first Tokugawa shogun and major figure in Japanese history. It was after this commission, in 1640, that the artist first took on the "artist name" of Tan'yū.

In addition to being a highly honored and respected painter in his own right, Tan'yū was known as a collector and connoisseur of Chinese paintings. He made sketches and kept records of many of the paintings that passed through his studio, brought to him for authentication.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 
 

Three Cranes. 1750. A very beautiful study of a family of three cranes. Excellent detail in the painting and elegantly thought out. A very old scroll from the 18th century. The painting is fine with a little damage on the silk in places therefore to stabilise the paining the silk needed rebacking and the scroll master had to remount the painting onto a new silk scroll. This is a long an difficult restoration. It will come with a beautiful hand made box covered with 19th century Kimono Silk with embroidered cranes flying through the grey blue sky. About this special Kimono Silk I had this length of antique silk in my own collection for over 40 years and it  dated from 1860. I decided to have this length made into a few special boxes for some of our crane scrolls.. £375

( The silk mounts are grey and not blue.)

This stunning landscape scroll by the artist Nanko , painted in 1819 has now been fully restored. The rising sun over the mountains, deep pine forest and rushing waterfall all add to the vibrancy and movement of this wonderful painting. The Jiku -scroll ends, are made from bone. I had this black on black pattern antique Kimono Silk which we made into a beautiful box. £195

Haruki Nanko (1759-1839)

Nanko had become popular as a painter during the1830s he had become equal to one of the reigning artists at that time,Tani Bunchô (1763-1840) who was also a friend . It had taken Nanko some time to gain recognition in Edo. The reason for this was his many years travelling to study Southern Chinese painting. However, in the course of his travels he gained many students. When he returned to Edo he introduced this Southern painting style where all Nanga painters in Edo still worked in the Northern style. His son Nammei, (Haruki Nammei 1795-1878) was still developing his own style at the time during this rise in popularity of his father but he became well known in his own right.

 

 

 
 


Japanese Hanging Scroll　Painted middle to later 19th century. Edo into Meiji Period.
Sumi-e-Ink wash landscape painting.

  • Title: Suiboku Sansui, Ink monochrome landscape. A view of Fuji san in the clouds.
     
  • Artist: One seal saying: Tantou.
     
  • Item Description: Japanese landscapes during the 19th century evolved through the influences of paintings and artists coming in from the Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty. As a result, literati landscapes such as the Bunjin and Nanga schools became popular during the 19th century. The Kano school continued to do the traditional landscapes done during the 15th and 16th centuries as their forefathers did, but by the 18th and the 19th centuries most schools were just copying the same styles as their predecessors did. This work combines both elements of literati and some Kano school elements. The hut pavilion and arrangements look literati but the brushwork has resemblance of some Kano school pieces. The odd part is the seal. The artist signed it with the seal saying "tanto" which means overseeing or to oversee, which is not used in artist names and it is not used in older Japanese. One can only assume that the work could have been done during the late Edo to the Meiji era. The calligraphy was done by the scroll researcher in honour of the painting using a poem from Hanshan, the 8th century zen poet.(see below)
     
  • Size:Hanging Scroll:27.1 inches x 47.8 inches or 121.5 cm x 63 cm / 69 cm (with the ends). (approx.)

    Painting: 15.35 inches x 19.68 inches or 39 cm x 50 cm. £170


    Scroll Box: Yes
    Condition: Restoration work has been done with the painting restored and cleaned. The scroll is entirely remounted and the painting can be enjoyed for the next century or so.

  • Roller Ends (Jikusaki):Black lacquered wood.

Hanshan (Chinese: 寒山; pinyin: Hánshān; literally "Cold Mountain", fl. 9th century) was a legendary figure associated with a collection of poems from the Chinese Tang Dynasty in the Taoist and Chan tradition. He is honoured as an incarnation of the Bodhisattva Manjusri in Zen lore. In Japanese and Chinese paintings he is often depicted Hanshan was a sympathetic and important figure for Beat Generation writers Gary Snyder and Jack Kerouac. In the introduction to his translation which appeared in the Evergreen Review, Snyder wrote of Hanshan, "He and his sidekick Shih-te (Jittoku in Japanese) became great favourites with Zen painters of later days -- the scroll, the broom, the wild hair and laughter. They became Immortals and you sometimes run onto them today in the skidrows, orchards, hobo jungles, and logging camps of America." Kerouac's The Dharma Bums closes with a vision of Hanshan, and at Snyder's suggestion, Kerouac dedicated the book to the fabled poet together with his sidekick Shide or with Fenggan, another monk with legendary attributes.

When people look for the road in the clouds
The cloud road disappears
The mountains are tall and steep
The streams are wide and still
Green mountains ahead and behind
White clouds to east and west
If you want to find the cloud road
Seek it within

 

Nakajima Kaho-華鳳 中鳥:1866-1925
Showa / Meiji period   . Mandarin Couple including original artists box. The scroll mounts are original and while there is a tiny bit of damage on the scroll mounting at the very top, (shown in the thumbnail above)  this is minor and I did not feel that it warranted a complete remount. However, if you would like this remounted I will do that for £125. The Jiku-scroll ends are made from Ivory and carved into rings. These are very beautiful and identify that this is a very high quality scroll..

50.2x193.5cm / 19.7x 76.1inches £395

Nakajima Kaho-華鳳 中鳥:1866-1925-(1939-there are two dates of his death for some reason) 

Born in Kyoto, preferred the Maruyama Okyo style drawing, and learned painting under Mori Kansai,and
calligraphy under Tomioka Tessai.Often exhibited Naikoku Kangyo Hakurankai and the other exhibitions.
Good at landscape and kachoga. Kaho’s artistic mastery  includes his relaxed, evocative brushwork, his intriguing
 composition, and his choice to omit everything nonessential. The cold of the winter morning is left to our imagination,
as is the question of just what is the 'feeling' being portrayed. His almost wild and loose brushwork signature on the box is indicative of his free spirit.

Other Kaho's

Fujii Kaho, an early 20th century Nanga painter.

Kaho Kawakita (1875-1940)
He was born in Kyoto in 1875.
His real name was Gennosuke Kawakita .
He studied painting with Baire Kouno and Hobun Kikuchi.
He died in 1940 at the age of 66.

Kaho Akira-modern living painter


Box: Blue-green cliffs and the river with a boat using its sail, painted by myself (Toshu)

Translation:

" In the distances is the steep rocks of the eagle's three cliffs,
on land is the tea fields where a spring is found in the field.
It is when that in Autumn the mountains, rivers and the landscape are seeking the inevitable change,
Autumn tells me that I yearn to return to those fields. 
 
Painted in the Autumn of 1940, beneath the northern face of the mountain at Hyakuraku-so."

Seal on the bottom of painting says: 'Seeds and flowers float in the water where the leaves are' 

Painted by Toshu in 1940 with the original artists box.
An outstanding and very beautiful scroll.81 inches long x 22 inches wide £275

 

 

 

 
 
Two paintings by Ujo Hara.A.D 1884-1971. Born in Kumamoto pref. Painter, poet, calligrapher. He was a student of Chokunyu Tanomura, Chikugai  Himejima . Seisho Fukuda.

These have now been  restored and mounted into a pair of matching scrolls with a double Antique Kimono Silk covered Scroll Box The scrolls are 32 inches wide

The set is £675


 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
在书画创作交流方面，馆员亦有卓越成就。名誉馆员彭友善在北京举办个人画展时，其作品《篱竹鸡栖图》、《长啸》、《群雏图》三幅为中国美术馆收藏；胡克中1992年在日本举办个人画展，受到当地赞誉；黄天璧应国家人事部邀请，于1996年底参加第二次全国书画人才交流会；何报榴彩墨画《巴山日出》被选入欧洲中国书画院举办的"中国画佳作欧洲巡回展"，在德、法、比等6国巡回展出，并获佳作奖。

Painting and calligraphy: '1992 Hu Ke Zhong held personal exhibitions in Japan to great Local acclaim'
This news shows Hu Ke Zhong was member of the Literrary and History Association(文史馆)，
In the past, only older famous people could join such an association. Most of them were former
members of Guomindang government.
 
We found  this link and called them. The director Mr.He, told us that
Hu Kezhong was indeed a very famous professor of Art in China but has been dead for many years.

This scroll is an outstanding example of Chinese Scroll art at the very highest level
and comes with the original artists signed box. This scroll is valued at £2500.oo in China.
Our price for this outstanding scroll is £1500

Kanou Isen'in (1775-1828)
Setsu gekka 雪月花 (Snow, Moon and Flowers)
「雪月花」means the beautiful things of each season.
Isen Hogan Hude seal（伊川法眼筆）
Hanging scroll：ink and colour on paper

Restored in 2011 click for larger image

All the scrolls are the same size

Kanō Isen'in Naganobu (1775-1828) was the seventh generation head of the Kobikichō branch of the Kanō school in Edo (modern Tokyo).
He was an artist of considerable talent, and was official painter to the shōgun.
For this work he employed mild, graceful brushwork and colouring, drawing on an older style of Yamato-e.
The secret of his success was said to have been that he combined the qualities of gakuga (learned artistic ability), highly prized by the Kanō school, with shinga (instinctive artistic ability), which was customarily regarded as less important.

Triptych £1250

 

 

 
 

 

The signature on the scroll reads Shibata Gito 柴田義董Japan, 1780 – 1819

Gito Shibata, 白川芝山.

Pupil of Go Shun 1752-1811 the founder of the Shijō school of Kyoto

Shibata Gitô was born in Bizen and moved to Kyoto, where he became a student of Matsumura Goshun (1752-1811), the founder of the Shijô school of painting. Soon he became an important member of this school, specializing in landscapes and kachôga. His early death prevented him from becoming more widely known and from becoming as famous as Matsumura Keibun and Okamoto Toyohiko, the other two most prominent members of the Shijô school.
He also painted in the style of the Maruyama-Shijō school, whose founder Maruyama ōkyo (1737-95) had developed a new, naturalistic style to depict, among many other subjects, genre scenes of the urban life of Kyoto. Shibata Gitō (1780-1819) was a pupil of ōkyo's contemporary Go Shun (1752-1811). He died young and his works, characterized by fine brushwork and a light-hearted charm, are relatively rare.

The signature reads 'Gitō sha' ('Painted by Gitō')
References:
Araki, Tsune (ed), Dai Nihon shôga meika taikan, Tokyo 1975 (1934), p. 2210
Roberts, Laurance P., A Dictionary of Japanese artists, New York, 1976, p. 32 Notes: from a British Museum scroll:

Pictures of Flowers and Birds (Kachoga) took as its main subjects birds, grasses, and flowers. Some focused only on grasses and flowers, while in others insects such as cicadas, bees, and butterflies appeared in place of birds. There were in fact a large number of sub-types, including some that depicted animals like dogs, rabbits, or deer, in combination with flowers or trees.

 This scroll with box is £475

    

   

Seisen -Waterfall and Pine Taki Matsui 80x25 1978 with Box. £225


Before restoration                                           After being rebacked, creases removed and new silk mounts with bone Jiku's'ends

Unrei Satomi-1890. 1849-1928. Born in  HIROSHIMA. 

His teachers were Tariei Nakai and Nisho Yamagata. Most of his art works were lost by the atomic-bomb. This was therefore a very rare example of his surviving work .This unique and extremely rare scroll has now been fully restored for November 2010. The scroll was carefully straightened by hand, and the creases delicately removed, the painting was then rebacked for strength and new silk mounts sympathetic to the original remaining colours would be correct period of scroll mounts. The period bone ends were added to complete the scroll. This has its period box to hold this wonderful find. £295

 

 

Taka-Hawk Ink painting Gokoudou Yukihiko. Very powerful image. This has now been remounted with Grey Silk

scroll mounts and Silk covered box to match. £275

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

1: Okamura Keiho (b c1920) Tora 1950

The style is from the post-war era more in the range of 1950s. It is a wonderful painting. Keihi was born in the 1920's

This is a fascinating scroll both for the artistic quality and  realism.  £225 with box.

 

 

Blue Tit and Peony. Fully restored with new silk mounts,.

Kobayashi Ritsudo (1903-1974)Original name: 小林 立堂 -  小林 良曹, ｺﾊﾞﾔｼﾘｮｳｿｳ
He was born in Tokyo and learned under Kawasaki Shoko. A very competent painter with an eye for a very delicate image

Kawasaki Shoko (1886-1977) was a Nihonga painter from Gifu, who learned Yamatoe and fed it back to his paintings in his initial career, but gradually began to seek for his original style, like taking in a subject specific to oil painting. His teac hing of Kobayashi illustrates this as the style of his students work is almost like an oil painting.

£210 Including a specially made antique kimono silk covered box.

 

Before restoration                                            After

YOSAI OKADA. A.D 1784-1864. Born in KAGA clan (ISHIKAWA) 1840 seal Portrait of a Quince. £375

Before restoration this scroll painting was in a bad state. Many holes had to be repaired and the creases taken out as far as was possible. It was a great deal of slow and careful restoration that took a long time. However, as it is painted by a famous master it was important to bring the scroll back to life. With Box.

 

  

 

Ran no zu (orchid painting) before restoration          After restoration

 

The scroll was rebacked, creases taken out and new silk mounts. The original scroll ends were badly damaged so we made new scroll ends in a dense Chinese Rosewood.

The box is from silk that was originally used for a Kimono in the 19th century. Heavily embroidered, this is truly a work of art in its own right.

 

Artist: Kinoshita Itsuun (September 9, 1800-  September 12, 1866)

A wonderful small painting of an orchid plant by Kinoshita Itsuun. Signed and sealed by the artist. Kinoshita Itsuun is not too well known as a Japanese artist but within the Nagasaki Nanga School he is considered as a member of one the three great families of the Nagasaki Nanga School. Kinoshita was born in Nagasaki City Yahatamachi in 1800 and was the third son of Kinoshita Shigemasa.

At the age of 18 he inherited the Kinoshita estate and in 1829 left his estate to his nephew in order to fulfil his dream to became a doctor and entered Dokuseido a school that teaches the Dutch methods of treating small pox and other Western medicine.

 During his studies he also took up painting under the tutorship of a well respected local painter Ishizaki Yuushi, in order to learn the Chinese style known as Tang painting and continued his studies with some of the Chinese masters resident in Japan and  especially with Chen Yizhou, who had settled  for a time in Nagasaki  and who, incidentally, also taught Western styles.

He continued study of painting with his long time friend, Tetsuo Somon gaining high praise from the great masters, Tanomura Chikuden, Rai Sanyo, and Hirose Tanso. He was very successful as a teacher by this time and students included Kawamura Ukoku, Ikejma Sosen, Tsuda Nanchiku, his nephew and younger sister. Kinoshita was not just famous for his paintings,  and he was talented in many things including being known for his calligraphy, seal carvings, his biwa solos, and sencha (loose leaf tea ceremony). He was also known for developing the chemicals to create Kameyama wares and their white celadon.

Through his background working with Chinese masters, he could speak Chinese well and he was an assistant when Chinese emissaries came to Nagasaki and helped develop China-Japan relations. However, when he was returning from visiting Edo, he was on the English boat Kokuryu-maru and was involved in an accident near the shores of Nagasaki and would never return to Nagasaki. He was 68 years old. This is a rare work and has been respectfully restored..

With its special box the scroll is £325


 

Shien painted this very beautiful example of the Manzai or Comedians. 43.8cm by 194.3cm / 17.2" by 76.4 Silk painting with silk  mounts and  Bone scroll ends. Including an original box. £275 Reserved

Manzai (漫才) is a traditional style of stand-up comedy in Japanese culture, which usually involves two performers—a straight man (tsukkomi) and a funny man (boke)—trading jokes at great speed. Most of the jokes revolve around mutual misunderstandings, double-talk, puns and other verbal gags

Originally based around a festival to welcome the New Year, manzai traces its origins back to the Heian period. The two manzai performers came with messages from the gods and this was worked into a stand-up routine, with one performer showing some sort of opposition to the word of the other. This pattern still exists in the roles of the boke and the tsukkomi.

Continuing into the Edo period, the style focused increasingly on the humor aspects of stand-up, and various regions of Japan developed their own unique styles of manzai, such as Owari manzai (尾張万歳?), Mikawa manzai (三河万歳?), and Yamato manzai (大和万歳?). With the arrival of the Meiji Period,Osaka manzai (大阪万才?) began changes that would see it surpass in popularity the styles of the former period, although at the time rakugo was still considered the more popular form of entertainment.

 

 

 

 

 

 



Before restoration          After restoration
The silk mounts are grey and not blue.


Mount Ontake is the second highest volcano in Japan at 3,067 m (10,062 ft).

Painted in 1909

Shimazaki Ryu'o (1865-1937)Born in Edo-Tokyo. At first, he learned Western painting from Kenkichi Sakurai. Later, he turned his painting style to Japanese. Learned technique of the Yosai school from Fuko Matsumoto, and also learned technique of the Maruyama school from Gyokusho Kawabata. Also was good at painting Japanese beautiful girls-Bijen.

180 x 54cm 71 x22 inches

This has now been restored and comes with an antique Kimono Silk covered Box. £225

 



Kashu Hahacho (Mynah) on Camelia-Painting

Fully restored onto new silk mounts with antique Kimono Silk box made for this scroll Painting is 121x30 cm (47x12 inches)  £1250.

Kashu NUMATA - 1838-1901

Numata Masayuki, Bokusai, Kashu. A nobleman  from Owari province. Lived most of his life in Nagoya. Pupil of his grandfather Numata Gessai who had studied  ukiyo-e under Maki Bokusen and bunjinga under Baiistu. Numata was sufficiently highly regarded that he was commissioned by the emperor Meiji to decorate the Imperial Palace in 1888

Famous for a three volume book that he wrote and illustrated called Shucho Gafu between 1885 and 1916. This is one of his original paintings

Numata Kashu was from Nagoya and . He did a three volume kacho-ga in the period from about 1885 to 1890 and it was reprinted at least twice in the 20th century. Original printings of his books like this one are harder to find than the contemporary kacho books by Kono Bairei, Imao Keinen and Watanabe Seitei (Shotei). Numata was more concerned with the birds than with the flowers in his prints and his books are ornithologically more accurate than most of the genre.

Each book included as introductory material accompanying 12 leaves, printed both recto and verso, of striking color woodblock prints showing various species of birds in their natural habitats, some of the prints double page. Sm. 4to. Dec. stiff wrpps., tie-bound. Tokyo (Matsuyama-do Shoten/ Shosando Shoten) 1916.

Recently had extensive examination as to the authenticity of the scroll and this is a painting and not a screen print

Numata Kashû (1838-1901)

(Shûchô Gafu ?) (Pictorial monograph of birds). (Volume 3 of 3?). 25.0 x 18.1 cm. Laid paper in Japanese double construction (conjugate leaves) sprinkled with mica. Red upper paste-down with Japanese characters and 27 leaves. Japanese-style stitched binding. Bound Japanese style right to left with patterned blue paper over card. Lacks title label slip from upper cover. (Tokyo, Nakamura Sataro ?), 1889.

Red upper paste-down with characters; two leaves framed with double-green lines containing Japanese characters and two red stamps; 17 single and eight double-paged colored woodblock prints within single gray-ruled borders; final page of characters with two red stamps (different from those at beginning).

Numata Kashu was from Nagoya and was sufficiently highly regarded that he was commissioned by the emperor Meiji to decorate the Imperial Palace in 1888. He did a three volume kacho-ga in the period from about 1885 to 1890 and it was reprinted at least twice in the 20th century. Original printings of his books like this one are harder to find than the contemporary kacho books by Kono Bairei, Imao Keinen and Watanabe Seitei (Shotei). Numata was more concerned with the birds than with the flowers in his prints and his books are ornithologically more accurate than most of the genre. This one is exquisite with much brighter colors than the first volume and with some gauffrage and mica-sprinkled paper. Some of the color may have been applied by hand.

Bartlett & Shohara, p. 241

Please note that the top and bottom silk mounts are in grey and not blue. Incorrect camera setting

Winter scene Landscape by Shinso Mizuno(1903-1995)
Width 29" : Height 71.1" Now fully restored  £325

The grandson of Mizuno, Toshikata (1866-1908) who was a famous woodblock print artist.

Shinso Mizuna also created prints and was published a number of times by Unsodo Publishers

Unsodo is the name of a large Japanese publishing company with branches in both Tokyo and Kyoto. Founded in 1891, this company is still in existence today. From the 1890s through the 1930s, the Unsodo publishing house was involved in printing high quality pattern books for various crafts including textiles and lacquer. They also published fine art books with color woodblock print illustrations. After World War II, Unsodo became associated with a number of different shin hanga artists. Unsodo published several series of original landscape prints during the late 1940's, including 'Twelve Views of Japan' and 'Twelve Views of Kyoto'.

scroll picture to go in here

Mizuno, Toshikata (1866-1908) Japanese-style painter, illustrator. Lived in Tokyo. First learned woodblock printing from Taiso Yoshitoshi, then studied Japanese-style painting with Watanabe Shotei. Also studied decoration of ceramics. Member of the Nihon Bijutsu Kyokai and Nihon Bijutsuin, frequently serving as a juror for these groups. Among his puils were Ikeda Terukata, Ikeda Shoen, and Kaburagi Kiyokata. Painted genre subjects in a modified ukiyo-e manner with Shijo-style background.
In 1887 succeeded Yoshitoshi as illustrator for Yamato shinbun. Designed prints of battle scenes of Sino-Japanese War. At turn of the century was designing illustrations, including fashion plates for a department store. Frequent subjects were women and children in traditional garden settings.

Now fully restored  £325

 

 

 

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