LITMIR.BIZ

      Fig. 36 Oka Shumboku (1680-1763), "Flower Cart with Children," left-hand of pair of six-panel screens, early 18th c., each 5 ft 9 in x 12ft (1.7 m x 3.6 m). Photo courtesy Liza Hyde.

      Screens with Calligraphy

      Works with nothing but writing are perhaps the hardest to get to like, but are also very exotic as they are entirely outside Westerners' cultural realm. They are abundant and cheaper than other subjects (many are still made for monks and the lay equivalent-corporate warriors). If you buy one, you really should know roughly what it says, otherwise people will dismiss you as an airhead (like Japanese girls who wear T-shirts inscribed with incomprehensible English, French, or Italian phrases-which they never query but are considered "cute" or, worse, "fashionable").

      There are three main hands or scripts: sōsho or "running hand" is the most attractive to me, with its graceful curves and pace (but is barely legible to modern Japanese unless trained as calligraphers). The kaisho style has very square letters and is thus easier to read, but it is angular and ungraceful, while gyōsho lies halfway between. The poems chosen may have no special meaning for you but some knowledge is vital for appreciation, even if this is hard to come by. Calligraphy teachers and scholars are scarce.

      However, calligraphy is a widely practiced art. Innumerable exhibitions are held annually with different groups favoring one syllabary, such as hiragana, a seasonal theme, or literary topic. From an early age, teachers or parents urge schoolchildren to make their kakizome or first calligraphy of the year in early January. Since all kanji are expected to fit into the same space, however few or many strokes they have, this provides a lifelong introduction to space, balance, and perspective. I believe learning kanji contributes to the lasting interest in cartoons and animation and widespread visual skill. Little four- or five-character Zen statements are most suitable as starters. Shortly after I came to Japan, a friend gave me a scroll done by her mother. It says shikai shunpū, "four seas; a spring wind." Four seas implies all the seas and so the whole world, while a spring wind suggests the benefits of peace and prosperity. This charming scroll endeared her and the country to me. Mieko is still a good friend, so her spring wind has worked wonders.

      Visitors to meeting or reception rooms at Japanese companies, or Tea people, will have the opportunity to see many screens and scrolls, some exhorting greater effort and others extolling the Way.

      Screen Sizes

      Folding screens (byōbu) are large, flexible decorative items which were often the central point of aesthetic attraction in a palace, temple, or home. They helped illuminate a room by reflecting light, and served to divide space. For example, the women's quarters could be separated from the men's, the owner's from the servants'. They were also carried by servants to form a windbreak at picnics.

      When we read about the history of sixteenth- and seventeenth-century Japan, we are struck by how much attention was paid by the rulers and sub-rulers to having the best painters do the most magnificent screen paintings, thus creating the aura that still surrounds screens. The defenses and imposing lines of their castles were important, but the aesthetic content mattered just as much in winning plaudits from society. This has left an incredible legacy of beautiful pieces by artists in the Kanō line (painters to the court for generations), Tosa studio painters, and many others who did not necessarily sign their work, especially if it was for a grandee, but had learned in the same ateliers.

      Fig. 37 Anon.,"Winter Scenes with Birds," left hand of pair of six-panel screens, colors on paper, 18th c., each 5 ft 8 in x 12ft (1.7m x 3.6 m). Photo courtesy Liza Hyde.

      Fig. 38 Anon.,"Birds," six-panel screen, mineral colors on paper, 18th c., 20 in x 126 in (50 x 320 cm). Photo courtesy Liza Hyde.

      Artists in China, Korea, and Japan normally produced pairs of six-fold screens. In Japan, these were roughly the height of a man, but some were only 12 inches (30 cm) high and might have only two panels if made to decorate a small space or to hide something. Tea people often used smaller screens in the reduced confines of tea houses and more especially near the corner where tea was made. A wooden frame (often lacquered) was covered with layers of paper and the folds joined together. The painting was done on silk applied to this base. Thin squares of gold and silver foil were often applied round the design to make it look more sumptuous.

      This book is aimed at those with the interest and financial capacity to occasionally splurge on nice pieces. Readers should realize that screens worth having for a special place in their home are not likely to be low-priced.

      A panel nearly 6 feet (1.8 meters) high and 18 inches (46 cm) wide is already large so that when you think that an artist had twelve panels to fill, painting a pair of screens was clearly a major undertaking and an opportunity to make a statement. Historical masterpieces may be beyond the means of the average collector (many are already in museums), but you can see still wonderful examples

Скачать книгу