2024 Volume 5 Pages 31-40
This paper examines the method of expressing seasons used by Kiitsu Suzuki, a painter of the Rinpa school in the late Edo period. It focuses on the expression of cypress leaves and “doha (banks)” in his “Mountain Streams Summer and Autumn on a Folding Screen.” In the past, the expression of seasons was typically distinguished by "scenery." Prior studies suggest that the distinction of the seasons in this work is based on the "color" of the bank, and their examination of the "color" of this work has relied solely on visual observation, thus, leaning toward impressionism. This paper analyzes the “colors” of the cypress leaves, bank and stream using the Munsell color chart. Additionally, furthering the conventional focus on its streams, it paid attention to the trees and the contrast between summer/autumn and streams and analyzed his skillful painting techniques and intentions, taking into account the perspective of “color.” Going beyond scientific research, it clarifies the function, effect and role of the painting materials in Japanese paintings when the number of colors was still limited.
The strategy Kiitsu employed to express seasons expanded from the inclusion of the main themes of summer and autumn, adopted from his master, Hōitsu, to the following: differentiating (1) the hues within the green of the bank; (2) the rocky area of the bank; and (3) Using a radical method of contrasting the hues for the base of the cypress leaves from those of the details of the leaves and incorporating a broad spectrum of “Gunroku” (bluish green rock pigment) between azurite and malachite, creating deep shades of colors.
Kiitsu’s pilgrimage to the western provinces, as recorded in his diary, “Kishi Saiyu Nikki”, stimulated his senses in his creative activities. Furthermore, the sense of expression given by Hōitsu, his master, and associated individuals played a significant role in how Kiitsu established his uniqueness . This paper addresses an example of his work from the transitional phase.
