Peonies

mid 1700s

Peonies, mid 1700s. Tatebayashi Kagei (Japanese, active mid-1700s). Hanging scroll; ink and color on paper; painting only: 90.9 x 36.2 cm (35 13/16 x 14 1/4 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Worcester R. Warner Collection 1964.105 A proliferation of white tree peonies dominates this composition. Behind them are tall, feathery-topped susuki grasses and leafy deciduous trees. Tatebayashi Kagei restricted his palette to ink with red and white color, along with sparing use of green in the peony leaves and the blades of grass. He made generous use of the “dripping-in” (tarashikomi) technique, layering pooled ink and color, in the peony leaves. The areas left in reserve create the impression of
insect-eaten or late season foliage. In 1738, Kagei received a copy made by Ogata Kōrin of a fan painting by Tawaraya Sōtatsu from Kōrin's brother Ogata Kenzan, so some think he trained with Kenzan in Edo (present-day Tokyo).