Kanzan and Jittoku

Name: Kanzan and Jittoku
SKU: 4299
Price: 160.00 EUR
Availability: InStock

Kakemono, unique work, 159 x 60 cm

Product number: 4299

Height 159 cm
Width 60 cm
Item Type Kakemono
Jikusaki Wood
Material Honshi Paper
Period of Creation Meiji (1868–1912)
Technique Hand-Painted
Unique Work Yes

€160.00

Available, delivery time: 1-3 Days

Description

With disheveled hair, tattered robes, and exuberant expressions, two familiar figures of East Asian art appear in this kakemono: Kanzan and Jittoku, the eccentric sages who, in both Chinese and Japanese tradition, are regarded as the embodiment of unconventional wisdom and joie de vivre.

One carries a long staff with a gourd, the other leans laughing against his companion. The expressive faces with their exaggerated expressions and the loose, almost caricature-like brushwork are characteristic of depictions of these two figures, who are deliberately shown outside social conventions and courtly etiquette. Their unrestrained laughter is emblematic of a wisdom that reveals itself not through form and etiquette, but through the spontaneous recognition of the essential.

Motifs of Kanzan and Jittoku were highly popular in Zen-influenced painting, as they offered a refreshingly unacademic counterpoint to austere scholar figures. For collectors of humorous yet philosophically charged subjects, this kakemono is a lively addition.

Frequently asked

When was the work created?

Based on the previous owners' information and the condition of the object we place it broadly in the Meiji (1868–1912) period, but cannot give a precise date.

Is this genuine craftsmanship?

Yes, this piece is a genuine handcrafted original that exists only once.

Why does the date of creation sometimes not match the artist's dates

Because the two pieces of information speak about different things: the period designation describes the object – support, colors, condition – while the signature reflects which name appears on the painting. In most cases there is no attempt at deception behind this, but rather Japanese painting training: copying from workshop models was the curriculum for centuries, an utsushi is regarded as a bow to the teacher, workshops signed with the master's name, and artist names were passed down within a school. Such a hanging scroll is therefore not a forgery, but a hand-painted one-of-a-kind that continues the formal language of its school – just not the work of the famous name, and priced accordingly. We explain this in detail in the guide Why does a kakemono often bear the signature of an artist long deceased?.