河井荃廬の篆刻における中国古典の受容と展開

―三十八歳から四十九歳までを中心に―

抄録

  Senro Kawai (1871-1945) studied seal carving under Kaishin Shinoda, and later went to Qing to study directly under Wu Changshuo. His style, based on and created in accordance with the ancient Chinese imperial seals, the Han seals, and the seal-carving techniques of the Qing dynasty (Zhe School/Deng School), continues to exert great influence as one of the guiding principles for later carvers to follow. He was also well versed in epigraphy, grammatology, appraisal of calligraphy, and painting, and is considered one of the most outstanding modern Japanese carvers.

  In the course of the study, the author divides the transition of Senro's style in seal carving into four periods. The first is the period of Senro's acceptance of the Zhe School style from the age of 19 to 24. The second period is from the age of 25 to 37, when the influence of Chinese classics, especially the noble families of the Qing Dynasty belonging to the Deng School lineage, was strong. The third period is from the age of 38 to 49, in which the pre-Han classics were used as a foundation, and the characteristics of the classics that had been accepted up to that time were integrated. And the fourth period is from the age of 50 to the time of his death at the age of 75, the period of his later years.

  This paper discusses Senro's work in the third period in order to reexamine the conventional theory that his work was at its “zenith” at the age of 47. The age of 38 was a transitional period in which Senro sought a new stylistic direction, and from the age of 39 he explored more universal expressions of seal carving, focusing on the acceptance of the pre-Han classics. At the age of 40, he established a new style that did not stop at imitating or following the noble families in the Qing dynasty, and in his 40s, he worked to cultivate this style, creating works that were equally excellent in workmanship but different in style. Senro's uniqueness in this period includes the use of horizontal lines that turn upward toward the center of the line and downward toward the end of the stroke, inward curves of pairs of vertical lines, folds that bend after accumulating strength, and the contrasting use of rounded and angular parts, all of these expressions as if written with a brush used in seal carving.