Untitled

Kano Yukinobu 狩野之信

16th century · Originally a fan mounted as a hanging scroll; ink, color, and silver on gilded paper · Asian Art

Under the silver moon and the long, swaying green blades are the elegant flowers of autumn: chrysanthemums, carnations, and Chinese bellflowers, among others. Thread-thin silver brushstrokes above the green hills may indicate a flowing stream. The gentle colors and delicate flowers evoke waka poetry. The same subject, depicted in equally asymmetrical compositions, occurs in a number of fan paintings that bear the seals of Kano masters such as Shōei (1519–1592). This fan is also impressed with a seal, tentatively identified as that of Kano Yukinobu, who was either a younger brother of Kano Motonobu or his son. Although the seal's authenticity is in question, the painting is an excellent example of the Kano school's determined effort to absorb yamato-e idioms.

Artist

Kano Yukinobu 狩野之信

Date

16th century

Medium

Originally a fan mounted as a hanging scroll; ink, color, and silver on gilded paper

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Purchase, Friends of Asian Art Gifts, 1997