萩下絵和歌色紙　藤原家隆|Poem by Fujiwara no Ietaka (1158–1237) on Decorated Paper with Bush Clover

Ogata Sōken

mid- to late 17th century · Poem card (shikishi) mounted as a hanging scroll; ink and gold on paper · Asian Art

Ogata Sōken was scion of a Kyoto merchant family with clients among the capital’s aristocracy. While he trained and achieved competency in traditional styles of Japanese painting and calligraphy, he is best known for siring Kōrin and Kenzan, two of the greatest artists in the chronicles of Japanese art. Here, he has transcribed a travel poem by the courtier-poet Fujiwara no Ietaka. The poem reads: Chigiranedo hitoyo wa suginu Kiyomigata nami ni wakaruru akatsuki no sora No vows were made, but we spent the night at Kiyomi Bay, as the dawn sky breaks over the swell of waves. –Trans. John T. Carpenter

Artist

Ogata Sōken

Date

mid- to late 17th century

Medium

Poem card (shikishi) mounted as a hanging scroll; ink and gold on paper

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Mary Griggs Burke Collection, Gift of the Mary and Jackson Burke Foundation, 2015