Clusters of Chrysanthemum on Silver, Rinpa School, Edo period (1615-1868), late 18th-early 19th century. Photo courtesy Helena Markus Antique Japanese Screens.

Six-fold screen. Inen seal. Ink and colour on silver leaf. H 174 x W 352 cm

Chrysanthemum (kiku) was introduced from China around 500 a.d. with the focus on the plant’s medical uses. By the Heian period (794-1185) chrysanthemum were already cultivated as ornamental plants. Since then, with the evolution of a native artistic sensibility heavily influenced by the passing seasons, the flower gained its place as one of the first symbols of autumn.

Compositions such as this are known in Japanese as hyakka zu ( painting of hundred flowers).

The "Inen" seal (here it appears at the left bottom corner), used by the followers of Tawaraya Sōtatsu (act. 1602-40) appears on dozens of screens of flowers dating from the mid-seventeenth century onwards. This type of decorative composition which reached all levels of society in the Edo period, coincided with an explosion of interest in botany among the shōgun and the regional warlords.

In contrast to most of the Japanese screen paintings with floral or bird motifs, this rather striking example is totally covered with an overall design which is very ornate and yet beautiful. It is most unusual to see hundreds of white, red and pink chrysanthemum in full blossom filling virtually the entire silver surface of the painting .

The flowers are executed in a gesso-like technique called moriage which consists of building up the pattern in relief with a very finely powdered oyster shell-white mixture (gofun) combined with water and a binder. For variety, other colours are introduced such as orange, yellow, red and pink mingled with the white. The moriage device was another means the artists had to display the wealth of the military class and to fulfil the patrons’ desire to show it off.

The large corymbs of chrysanthemum are rhythmically arrayed across the screen. The blossoms in this painting explode over the surface; their rich palette of colour and pattern is most decorative and the beauty of the graceful flowers rather seductive. The composition could be compared to some Western Renaissance paintings for its richness and natural movement.

The screen is representative of the Rinpa style of painting which tends to create images of nature with an almost encyclopeadic attention to detail and allows the viewer to perceive that great sense of harmony that only nature is capable of creating. The composition closes at the far left of the screen with the white cluster pushing dramatically up and out of the frame.

The silver leaf of the screen has a beautiful patina to it and creates an unusual contrast with the vivid and lively colour-scheme of the flowers.

Provenance: Japan.

Helena Markus Antique Japanese Screens. MasterArt at TEFAF 2014. 14-23 march 2014 - http://www.masterart.com/