Untitled

Ikeda Koson

mid-19th century · Two-panel folding screen; ink on paper · Asian Art

In this dramatic close-up of a single landscape element, Ikeda Koson renders a timeless moment in a grove of hinoki cypresses. He depicts an atmosphere of misty space and shifting light by skillfully varying ink tones from black to gray in the leaves of frond-like branchlets. Texture and form result from the application of wet ink over pale washes on the tree trunks. Koson, a pupil of the Rinpa revivalist Sakai Hōitsu (1761–1828), brought a fresh vitality to standard themes in the Rinpa repertoire through his virtuoso brushwork and ability to convey naturalistic forms without sacrificing the bold decorative impact of his predecessors.

Artist

Ikeda Koson

Date

mid-19th century

Medium

Two-panel folding screen; ink on paper

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

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