柳鷺図 (Ryūro zu)|Heron and Willow

Sesshū Tōyō 雪舟等楊

18th–19th century · Hanging scroll; ink on paper · Asian Art

A spurious seal in the lower right corner of this picture of a heron on the stump of a willow tree reads "Tōyō," suggesting it is from the hand of Sesshū Tōyō. Sesshū was a highly celebrated medieval Japanese painter specializing in Chinese-style ink painting, and works in his style remained in high demand for centuries after his death at the beginning of the sixteenth century. This late forgery entered The Met's collection in 1914 along with nearly two hundred other Japanese and Chinese artworks from the collection of Charles Stewart Smith (1832–1909), a Trustee of the Museum. Smith was primarily a collector of European paintings but also acquired many Japanese and Chinese works of art during the last two decades of his life, after he and his third wife honeymooned in Japan in 1892.

Artist

Sesshū Tōyō 雪舟等楊

Date

18th–19th century

Medium

Hanging scroll; ink on paper

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Charles Stewart Smith Collection, Gift of Mrs. Charles Stewart Smith, Charles Stewart Smith Jr., and Howard Caswell Smith, in memory of Charles Stewart Smith, 1914