Currently not on view
Mount Fuji and Cherry Blossoms
Sakai Hōitsu 酒井抱一, 1761–1828
Japanese
Edo period, 1603–1868
2020-389 a-b
This pair of paintings by Sakai Hōitsu, one of the most famous painters of the Rinpa School, very likely were originally part of a set of four. Rinpa artists eschewed Chinese painting styles, instead employing vibrantly colored ink washes arranged in decorative, abstract patterns that were inspired by native Japanese artistic traditions. The subjects depicted in these two paintings include Mount Fuji, the most famous and holiest site in Japan, and cherry blossoms, which are equally symbolic of the country. The juxtaposition of softly rendered areas of the
compositions with precisely drawn and colored elements, such as the blossoms, is a hallmark of Rinpa School painting. The liberal use of gold on both scrolls speaks to the expense of the paintings and to the elevated importance of the subjects.
compositions with precisely drawn and colored elements, such as the blossoms, is a hallmark of Rinpa School painting. The liberal use of gold on both scrolls speaks to the expense of the paintings and to the elevated importance of the subjects.
Information
Title
Mount Fuji and Cherry Blossoms
Maker
Medium
Two hanging scrolls; ink and gold on silk
Dimensions
Painting (each): 81.6 × 26.6 cm (32 1/8 × 10 1/2 in.)
Mount (each): 162.6 × 44.4 cm (64 × 17 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
Gift from the Gitter-Yelen Collection and Museum purchase, Carl Otto von Kienbusch Jr. Memorial Collection Fund
Object Number
2020-389 a-b
Place Made
Asia, Japan
Signatures
Signed: 抱一筆
On each: Hōitsu hitsu (Painted by Hoitsu)
Inscription
Inscribed:
By Hotta Masaatsu (1758–1832)
Spring
My heart is afloat
With the beauty of the cherry blossoms
On the hill path soon to be climbed,
The white clouds of the peaks
Summer
Drifting mists and clouds
Float across the heavens
Yet they never reach beyond
The lower slopes of lofty Mount Fuji
Marks/Labels/Seals
Seals 鶯村
On each: Ōson
Culture
Period
Materials
Techniques
1995–2020 Gitter-Yelen Collection (New Orleans, LA), by gift and sold to the Princeton University art Museum, 2020.
