Five Sparrows on a Maple Branch
Sold – no longer available
This piece was handmade by Kano Sanraku and was a one-of-a-kind work. It cannot be reordered and will never exist in this form again. The page stays online as part of our archive.
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Details about the sold piece
- Height 173 cm
- Width 42 cm
- Item Type Kakemono
- Material Honshi Paper
- Period of Creation Shôwa (1926–1989)
- Technique Hand-Painted
- Unique Work Yes
- Wooden Box Yes
No longer available
Description
On slightly yellowed, finely textured paper, a gnarled branch with red maple leaves winds across a mist-shrouded expanse of water, on which several small sparrows have alighted. The visible signs of age and use on the support material lend the motif an authentic patina and underscore the antiquarian character of the piece, while the restrained coloring is entirely focused on the delicate red accents of the leaves.
The hanging scroll bears the signature and seal of the painter Kano Sanraku and was hand-painted in the Shōwa period. It is delivered including the accompanying wooden box, which was customarily used for storage and additionally documents the provenance of the piece. The elaborate mounting with a gold-brocade border stylishly sets off the tranquil pictorial motif.
As an atmospheric autumn motif, this kakemono is especially suited for display in the tokonoma during the cooler season, but its refined, poetic pictorial language also makes it convincing as a year-round collector's piece of Japanese bird-and-landscape painting.
