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Minori Chapter of the Tale of Genji shows the tension between Genji and his wife.

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Onna-e Paintings, Heian Period, (Japan) 794-1185

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Onna-e Paintings, Heian Period, (Japan) 794-1185

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During the Heian Period, The Tale of Genji tells a story of a man named Genji and is illustrated on scrolls called emakimonos. There are 2 different styles of emakimono paintings: onna-e and otoko-e. Otoko-e is considered the men's style and more focused on external emotions. It is mostly shown with vibrant colors and very transparent emotions. Onna-e is regarded as the women's style and more introverted feelings. You can see internal emotions in things like facial expressions, body language, lines/angles, colors/patterns, and scenery. The Tale of Genji is in onna-e style. In the Kashiwagi chapter of The Tale of Genji, the balcony streamers are all disorganized. This was done on purpose because it shows the disorganization in Genji's life. You can also see this with his body language because he is hunched over the infant and almost forced to look at him. The composition of Genji on the page also forces him to look at his son. Genji realizes his karma and accepts the responsibility of being a father. The room is divided by paper curtains giving the wife no privacy. In the Minori chapter of The Tale of Genji, a man and a woman are standing distantly from each other. They're ignoring each other so that they won't make eye contact. The man heard she was dying and felt regret and wanted to say goodbye. The garden in the background resembles his love for her, and it looks like it is quickly dying.

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This is a portrait of the Fujiwara Family who took over Japan. 

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Court Culture and Religious Practices (Japan), 11th century

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Court Culture and Religious Practices (Japan), 11th century

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In the Heian Period, the gates between Japan and China opened, expanding the arts in Japan. There was also a development of court culture in the arts. The Fujiwara family came to Japan in the late 9th century and took full power of the Japanese court. With the arts coming to life, they had things such as religious activities and poetry contests. There was also a new form of literature that was created by court ladies called monogatari ("tales told"). Poetry was a beneficial skill to have because it determines how they are viewed in society. For example, if a woman could not compose poetry, she was hidden from society; if a man could not compose poetry, he wouldn't be able to work in the capital. Women were prohibited in public and could only be seen by husbands and fathers. They had blackened teeth, thin pencil eyebrows, white powdered faces, middle-parted hair, and 20-30 silk robes on at a time. Women were often left by themselves, which led to a lot of affairs.
Pure Land Buddhism, or Western Paradise, was a concept of reaching fulfillment in one's life. During the age of Mappo, there was little hope for fulfillment, and would go through 3 stages after passing. People were losing hope and therefore wanted to be saved by Amida Buddha and be reborn into the Western Paradise. Genshin was a Buddhist monk who wrote an essay "Essentials of Salvation" describing what would happen if you did not get reborn into Western Paradise.

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In this painting, you can see a demond getting hit by another demond. 

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Kamakura rokudo -e scrolls, Kamakura Period (Japan) 1185-1333

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Kamakura rokudo -e scrolls, Kamakura Period (Japan) 1185-1333

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During the Kamakura Period, they believed in reaching enlightenment by being reborn into Western Paradise. Within Western Paradise, there are 6 realms of existence: unenlightened heavenly beings, humans, animals, constantly fighting demons, hungry ghosts, and beings in hell. These paintings were made to scare people into being reborn into one of these realms. There are only 3 remaining scrolls that have survived. One of the scrolls, Hungry Ghost by Emakimono, shows the realms of hungry ghosts with living people. The people can't see or feel the spirits so they don't know what is happening in the other domain. The hungry ghosts symbolize need and greed because they are never satisfied. In the scroll, you can see the people using the bathhouse. The ghosts are so desperate that they are trying to get feces from the living people. In another area of the scroll, you can see the ghosts climbing on the humans, trying to pick out earwax to eat. In the Hell Scrolls by Jigoku Zoshi, there are 8 major hells. In the Hell of Excrement, you can see people drowning in sewage containing maggots. They are getting bitten by larvae and giving them welts on their heads. There is also the Notebook of Diseases and Deformities by Yamai no Soshi. These scrolls show real people's karma. In one of the frames, you can see a woman who is violently ill, with an older woman trying to comfort her and another woman trying to bring her soup. These scrolls are meant to scare the public into being more hopeful and living a more fulfilling life.

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Feeding Geese is a painting by Qian Xuan where you can see 2 people in a pavilion feeding geese.

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Feeding Geese, Qian Xuan, Yuan Dynasty, (China), 13th Century

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Feeding Geese, Qian Xuan, Yuan Dynasty, (China), 13th Century

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Qian Xuan was the most famous painter of the yearly Song Yuan dynasty. He was considered a traditionalist because he would take old traditions from past dynasties and incorporate them into their time period. The traditionalists dominated the field in the early Yuan. Qian was part of a group of educated scholars, poets, and artists in Wuxing known as The Eight Talents of Wuxing. In 1286, Kublai Khan invited around 20 scholars from Wuxing to the capital Dadu. Qian was praised by his contemporaries when we refused the invitation. Qian used archaism in his paintings going back to Tang, which was considered a Golden Age. He does this by using colors like blue and green, which were considered wealthy. He would also take inspiration from artist Ma Yuan through composition and style. He would put the subject matter into the corners. He also liked to put a scholar looking into the distance. Ma dots were commonly used throughout these periods, and in Wang Xizhi Feeding Geese, they are spread out on the grooves of the land. He used multiple textures and lightweights in his most commonly recognized hand scroll Wang Xizhi Feeding Geese. In the background mountains, you can see right past the colored mountains that shadows are behind them, showing depth to the painting. In this righthand corner, you know the hint of how the mid-ground is the river because of the darker shadows of the current. There's also some thin-lined architecture in the forestry area which could be a village. On the left, you can see a pavilion with a skewed view of the roof. In the pavilion, an attendant and scholar look out into the distance.

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The Fisherman by Wu Zhen is one of the most famous paintings from one of the 4 great masters. This painting shows 16 fisherman in the water.

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The Fisherman, Wu Zhen, Yhan Dynasty, (China) 13th Century

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The Fisherman, Wu Zhen, Yhan Dynasty, (China) 13th Century

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Wu Zhen was one of the Four Great Masters who created black and white ink paintings. In this painting named The Fisherman, he based it on his internal feelings. This hand scroll is over 18 feet long and contains 16 fishermen. Wu felt isolated from society when the Mongols took over, so he showed his emotion in the fishermen. For each fisherman, he had a poem next to them. Only 4 of the fisherman are actively fishing, and the rest are sleeping or gazing at the scenery. You can tell the fishermen aren't perfectly straight, meaning something was "off." There is one boat that contains a recluse scholar and his attendant boy. The landscape is detailed with fine/light lines. He adds ma dots in large clusters in a zig-zag pattern to create depth to the mountains. He also clusters them to develop plants. Some shadows are shown by watercolor (diluted ink). He added darker shaded rocks that help the shorelines break up the tone difference. The last thing Wu adds is a large pavilion with thick black lines and bold outlines. The composition of the roof is skewed and not the correct view. This was considered antisocial because he hated the city. This was a sad message because this signaled the end. With Wu also being a calligraphist, he wrote a cursive script at the far left.

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The Hall of The Supreme Harmony is one of the most important buildings in the Forbidden City.

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The Forbidden City, Ming Dynasty, (China) 1406

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The Forbidden City, Ming Dynasty, (China) 1406

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The Forbidden City is surrounded by large walls to have a private area for the emperor and his servants and family. The roads were all in a grid form going north, south, east, and west. Inside the city, they contained modular buildings that were more resistant to earthquakes and weather conditions. This system of construction was designed not to include any fasteners or adhesives. They are pre-measured and cut the wood framing to make them fit perfectly and can be replaced easier if needed. They also used brackets for decorative elements. In past dynasties, they were needed for structural purposes but grew small as time went on, and they weren't needed. There were four different types of buildings: halls, towers, gates, and pavilions. The Gate of Heavenly Peace (also known as Tiananmen) was the entrance to the city. This is an essential building because it has underground tunnels under the raised foundation for the emperor and his servants. The Hall of Supreme Harmony, Central Harmony, and Protecting Harmony are the three great halls. The Hall of Supreme Harmony is where ceremonies, celebrations, and the winter solstice are held. The Hall of Protecting Harmony was for the emperor to meet with a scholar who was able to join his Office of Admissions. The Hall of Central Harmony is where the emperor would go to rest. The emperor's building was located in the center and faced south, symbolizing harmony.

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Landscape by Dan Jin was known for copying elements from the 4 great masters.

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Dai Jin, Ming Dynasty, (China) 14th Century

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Dai Jin, Ming Dynasty, (China) 14th Century

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Dai Jin founded the school of Zhe for professional painters but was originally a metalsmith. Because of false charges against him out of jealousy, he could not serve for the Ming Court and decided to sell his paintings. His paintings sold very well, and now was a famous painter throughout the Ming Empire. His paintings were inspired by the famous painter known as Xie Haun. He liked to put four seasons into his paintings and show the transitions of the seasons. The Zhe school was known for copying the 4 master's works and was not liked by the opposing school. In Returning Home at Evening by Dai Jin, he painted a mindscape of what he thinks it would look like when his friend returns home from his job in the evening. It was a retirement gift for him, and he is seen opening his door in the bottom right corner. Inside the door, there is a paper lantern on a stick for light, meaning that there is a story behind his person. He used a court-style pathway in a zig-zag through the land so that he could help the viewer navigate. Starting the zig-zag pathway, he added people so that the viewer would want to see where they would go through this landscape. The pine trees also help the viewer's eyes lead upward. When comparing his work to other famous painters, Dai was more technical in his brushwork but used similar compositions to the four masters.

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Catching a Catfish with a Gourd by Josetsu is a non rational question that needs to be looked at in irrational ways.

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Josetsu, Muromachi Period, (Japan) 15th Century

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Josetsu, Muromachi Period, (Japan) 15th Century

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Josetsu established the Muromachi School of ink painting, but there is not much else known about his personal life. The painting Catching a Catfish with a Gourd is the only work that has survived to this day. It contained 31 poems and was originally for the shogun Ashikaga Yoshimistu. In the painting, you can see a man trying to catch a catfish, but he doesn't have a fishing rod. He only has a gourd and is sticking it out in front of him. This is a non-rational question and is, therefore, a koan. This uses Chinese composition and contains ma dots, iron wire lines, and abbreviated faces. At first, the person in the painting looks tired, has his head tucked into his shoulders, and has very tattered clothing. The man's way of catching the fish is if he sticks the gourd in front of the catfish, he can't see it. In his mind, that means he has caught the fish. He also tries to mimic the fish by having whiskers, a smudged face, and wearing the same colors as the fish. This painting wasn't meant to have an actual and rational answer to the puzzle. It made you think of all the other possibilities that it could be.

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Kano School Panels that Eitoku painted in life size form. 

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The Kano School, Momoyama Period, (China) 15th Century

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The Kano School, Momoyama Period, (China) 15th Century

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The Kano School of the Momoyama Period came together in the 15th century from a samurai family. They were leading in the Chinese painting style. This style was explicitly for the daimyo. Eitoku’s father gave him the task of painting the interior of a room that was surrounded by screen panels. This room had 3 walls of panel doors, and in the center of the floor was hardwood. This painting was made to look life-size and was made to focus on the foreground. He also uses the corners of the panels to draw our eyes to the next board. The mural contains Chinese subjects like cranes, ducks, and water. He also used gold dust to raise the value, as seen in the painting. It gives it a shiny look that is different from standard paint. The paint contains no oils to prevent wear. There are metal plaques to open the doors to the garden. At this time, it was common for artists to take inspiration from other artists, and in this case, the crane on one of the panels can be compared to Mu Qi’s hanging scroll of a crane. The cranes are very similar in shape and form but have differences like the length of the neck and the placement of the feathers.

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This is an eagle from the work Two Eagles which shows how he used larger brush strokes to form the body of the eagle. 

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Badashanren, Qing Dynasty, (China) 16th Century

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Badashanren, Qing Dynasty, (China) 16th Century

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Badashanren, born Zhu Da, was born a prince during the Ming Dynasty. He was considered one of the four great painters. He was also known for being silent and eventually going insane. This was because of the invasion of the Machus in the Ming Dynasty. With him being a prince, this meant everything would be taken away from him. When he was 18, the Manchus did invade Ming, and he went mute. He did not speak for ten years and was still trying to cope with the loss of his life. He decided to leave his home and dedicate 20 years of his life to Buddhism. A couple of years later, he started to go insane. But he wrote a poem stating that he was pretending, but no one knew whether he was faking it or not. As time went on, he started focusing on painting and calligraphy. He was described as an individualist and protest painter. Looking at his works Two Eagles and Flower, he uses minimal brush strokes and delicate linework. He also doesn't use any outlines for forms and uses a stitching technique, "xieyi," that relates to the Chan painting of the past. Two Eagles are considered a protest painting because the eagles show confidence and there is an underlying meaning. Eagles are known for being the symbol of power and strength, and in the painting, they show bravery and loyalty. The whites of the eyes are interpreted as Badashanren’s anger of losing his homeland. In his painting Flower he only used 12 brush strokes in total.

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Plum Blossoms is Jin Nongs' artwork which resembles the Seven Junipers tree.

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Jin Nong, Qing Dynasty, (Japan) 16th Century

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Jin Nong, Qing Dynasty, (Japan) 16th Century

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Jin Nong is one of the Eight Eccentrics of Yangzhou and started his painting and calligraphy career at 50 years old. He sold his paintings at local marketplaces initially, but as time passed, he became ill and needed to use “ghost painters” to survive financially. He had an understudy named Lou Ping, who helped him with the production of his works. He used a graphic writing style for the poems based on ancient stele inscriptions. In his most recognized painting, "Plum Blossoms,” the tree is supposed to resemble the Seven Junipers tree. The tree trunk starts on the left side of the image, and the branches go outward to the right. He uses various shapes and sizes of ma dots on the trunk, branches, and flowers. On the flowers, he doesn't use any outlines but has fine line details in them, including different-sized ma dots placed strategically. He uses a mix of thick and thin brush strokes with fine-line calligraphy for small pieces. He focuses more on the trunk of the tree and less on the branches. The different density of ink wash gives the tree trunk more of a 2d form and creates extra layers. In the background, there is a river in the distance with a fog surrounding it. The paper has a chatter on it, making the paper have some different textures.

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The Appearance of Yoshiwara print made by Moronobu was made of a woodblock print that was able to produce multiple prints at once.

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Hishikawaka Moronobu, Edo Period,  (Japan) 1618-94

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Hishikawaka Moronobu, Edo Period,  (Japan) 1618-94

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Hishikawa Moronobu was an ukiyo-e print artist that was known for creating a system of creating multiple prints of artwork at once. He was from an artistic family of fabric decorators and embroiderers. He originally wanted to have a career in printed book illustration and was able to discover the art of printmaking. He was known for mailing small prints to families, and they would want to collect all of the paintings. Printmaking was an easy way to create multiple prints at once and would take a fraction of the time to make. There were exclusive print designers, carvers, and printers. Soon prints were able to be produced with color. They did this by carving certain parts of the block of that color and repeating with each color, making sure they lined up perfectly. In the ukiyo-e print, The Appearance of Yoshiwara by Moronobu, it is tough to tell that it is a woodblock print. In the right corner, you can see the back wallpaper fading, and the composition stops on the right side except for the sidewalk. He would try to slip his name into the design, which no one had done before. He did work similar to The Tale of Genji. He also never drew real people and only generalized faces.