{"product_id":"tanzaku-e-of-black-cat-by-sui-water-c-1970s","title":"Tanzaku-e of 'Black Cat' by Sufuyuro, c. 1970s","description":"\u003ch3 data-end=\"294\" data-start=\"278\"\u003e\u003cstrong data-end=\"294\" data-start=\"282\"\u003eThe Item\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp data-end=\"977\" data-start=\"295\"\u003eA suite of sixteen \u003cem data-end=\"325\" data-start=\"314\"\u003etanzaku-e\u003c\/em\u003e (短冊絵) — hand-painted poem and illustration cards executed in ink and mineral pigment on handmade \u003cem data-end=\"413\" data-start=\"406\"\u003ewashi\u003c\/em\u003e paper.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-end=\"977\" data-start=\"295\"\u003eEach piece measures approximately 6–7 × 36 cm and depicts motifs drawn from classical \u003cem data-end=\"517\" data-start=\"507\"\u003ekacho-ga\u003c\/em\u003e (flowers and birds) and \u003cem data-end=\"552\" data-start=\"542\"\u003ebunjinga\u003c\/em\u003e (literati) painting: plum blossoms, bamboo, orchids, pine, rice stalks, and seasonal wildflowers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-end=\"977\" data-start=\"295\"\u003eThis particular piece is more modern and expressive — depicting a cat with a red collar, poised at rapt attention \u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e — highlight the hybrid influence of traditional Japanese brushwork combined with Western painting  techniques. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-end=\"977\" data-start=\"295\"\u003eCollected in Kyoto, these \u003cem data-end=\"688\" data-start=\"679\"\u003etanzaku\u003c\/em\u003e bear red seals (\u003cem data-end=\"712\" data-start=\"705\"\u003ehanko\u003c\/em\u003e) and signatures (\u003cem data-end=\"734\" data-start=\"730\"\u003egō\u003c\/em\u003e) in both kanji and kana, each identifying the pseudonym of a different artist. This artist's signature is particularly difficult to make out, but could possibly read: すふゆろ。\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-end=\"977\" data-start=\"295\"\u003eThe delicate brushwork and variation in tone suggest a mix of professional and semi-professional \u003cem data-end=\"903\" data-start=\"894\"\u003enihonga\u003c\/em\u003e painters working in Kyoto during the mid-to-late Shōwa period (1950s–1980s). This piece is most likely from the 1970s\/\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3 data-end=\"1002\" data-start=\"984\"\u003e\u003cstrong data-end=\"1002\" data-start=\"988\"\u003eThe Artist\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp data-end=\"1647\" data-start=\"1003\"\u003eEach artist signs their \u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cem data-end=\"325\" data-start=\"314\"\u003etanzaku-e \u003c\/em\u003eunder a poetic \u003cem data-end=\"1040\" data-start=\"1036\"\u003egō\u003c\/em\u003e — a pseudonym derived from classical Chinese and Japanese literati custom.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-end=\"1647\" data-start=\"1003\"\u003eNames such as \u003cstrong data-end=\"1143\" data-start=\"1130\"\u003eSetsugaku\u003c\/strong\u003e (“Snow Peak”), \u003cstrong data-end=\"1171\" data-start=\"1159\"\u003eGyokusen\u003c\/strong\u003e (“Jade Spring”), \u003cstrong data-end=\"1198\" data-start=\"1189\"\u003eHanpō\u003c\/strong\u003e (“Half Peak”), and \u003cstrong data-end=\"1227\" data-start=\"1218\"\u003eShōan\u003c\/strong\u003e (“Pine Hermitage”) evoke nature, solitude, and the pursuit of inner cultivation through art.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-end=\"1647\" data-start=\"1003\"\u003eWhile individual biographical records are rare, the coherence of brush style and paper stock suggests these painters belonged to a Kyoto \u003cem data-end=\"1469\" data-start=\"1460\"\u003etanzaku\u003c\/em\u003e workshop, calligraphy circle, or small art-supply gallery network (such as Unsōdō or Rakusensha), where \u003cem data-end=\"1585\" data-start=\"1574\"\u003etanzaku-e\u003c\/em\u003e were sold for tea gatherings, gifts, and seasonal decoration.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3 data-end=\"1675\" data-start=\"1654\"\u003e\u003cstrong data-end=\"1675\" data-start=\"1658\"\u003eThe Tradition\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp data-end=\"2303\" data-start=\"1676\"\u003e\u003cem data-end=\"1687\" data-start=\"1676\"\u003eTanzaku-e\u003c\/em\u003e originated in Edo as vertical poem cards used for inscribing waka or haiku. From the Edo period onward, they became a favored format for \u003cem data-end=\"1825\" data-start=\"1818\"\u003ehaiga\u003c\/em\u003e (haiku-painting) and small \u003cem data-end=\"1863\" data-start=\"1853\"\u003ekacho-ga\u003c\/em\u003e compositions, and prized for their intimacy and economy of brush.\u003cbr data-end=\"1928\" data-start=\"1925\"\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-end=\"2303\" data-start=\"1676\"\u003eIn the twentieth century, Kyoto’s \u003cem data-end=\"1971\" data-start=\"1962\"\u003enihonga\u003c\/em\u003e painters revived the form, marrying literati brushwork with a modern sensibility that was concise, contemplative, and suited to the domestic scale of Japanese interiors. These \u003cem data-end=\"2148\" data-start=\"2139\"\u003etanzaku\u003c\/em\u003e stand within that lineage, preserving the formal restraint and spontaneity of the \u003cem data-end=\"2242\" data-start=\"2234\"\u003ebunjin\u003c\/em\u003e tradition while adapting it to a postwar decorative context.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3 data-end=\"2329\" data-start=\"2310\"\u003e\u003cstrong data-end=\"2329\" data-start=\"2314\"\u003eThe Culture\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp data-end=\"2931\" data-start=\"2330\"\u003eEach painting embodies a distinctly Japanese aesthetic of \u003cem data-end=\"2397\" data-start=\"2388\"\u003eshibumi\u003c\/em\u003e (quiet refinement) and \u003cem data-end=\"2436\" data-start=\"2421\"\u003emono no aware\u003c\/em\u003e (the pathos of transience). The subjects—bamboo bending in wind, a single blossom on bare branch, the poised arc of a rice stalk—reflect not spectacle but the beauty of restraint.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-end=\"2931\" data-start=\"2330\"\u003eIn Kyoto, such works were exchanged among friends, poets, and tea practitioners as expressions of season, mood, or gratitude.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp data-end=\"2931\" data-start=\"2330\"\u003eTo a contemporary viewer, they offer a window into Kyoto’s living craft culture, one where the line between art and utility, practice, and philosophy, is gracefully porous.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Another Country","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47727245656315,"sku":null,"price":500.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0747\/2064\/1275\/files\/WallHanging-3.jpg?v=1764090551","url":"https:\/\/inanothercountry.co\/products\/tanzaku-e-of-black-cat-by-sui-water-c-1970s","provider":"Another Country","version":"1.0","type":"link"}