Suzuki Kiitsu, Flowers and
grasses of the Four Seasons, a pair of
hanging scroll paintings
Japan
Edo period, AD
1840s
Suzuki Kiitsu (1796-1858) was a pupil of Sakai
Hōitsu (1761-1828), the last of the three great masters of the
Rimpa school, who revived the style in Edo (Tokyo). Earlier Rimpa
painters had depicted plants in a boldly stylized manner, but by
the nineteenth century, a greater degree of naturalism had crept
into the actual drawing of the flowers. However, the design of the
paintings is still quite flat and formalized and the end result is
highly decorative.
Kiitsu
has used distinct outlines and bright primary colours, especially
the brilliant azurite blue,
(gunjō) which draws the
eye to certain points on the scrolls. The effect is saved from
harshness by the use of
tarashi-komi where green
paint has been dripped onto areas of black ink while it was still
wet. This was a hallmark of Rimpa painting right from its
beginnings in the early seventeenth century. The compositions of
the two paintings complement each other perfectly. The right-hand
scroll shows spring and summer flowers - aster, orchid, violet,
thistle and lily - standing erect from the base; while on the left,
the bushclover, narcissus, hibiscus, chrysanthemum and bellflower
of autumn and winter intertwine more
softly.
The signature reads
'Seisei Kiitsu' and the seal reads
'Shukurin'.
L. Smith, V. Harris and T. Clark, Japanese art: masterpieces in (London, The British Museum Press, 1990)
I. Hirayama and T. Kobayashi (eds.), Hizō Nihon bijutsu taikan-2, vol. 3 (Tokyo, Kodansha, 1993)