Artists

Ikeda Keisen

Ikeda Keisen (池田桂仙, 1863–1931) was a Nanga painter in Kyōto and in 1921 was among the founders of the Nihon Nangain.

Published on: Jul 19, 2026

Kakemono by Ikeda Keisen: waterfall in reduced ink painting. — Waterfall – kakemono by Ikeda Keisen (池田桂仙) (detail)

In a nutshell

Ikeda Keisen (池田桂仙) was a Japanese painter of the Nanga school (1863–1931). His personal name was Katsujirō. His father Ikeda Unshō was likewise a Nanga painter and worked as an assistant teacher of literati painting at the Kyoto Prefectural Painting School. In 1874 Keisen moved to Kyoto with him and received his training at the same school. In 1921 he was among the founders of the Nihon Nangain, in which literati painters from all over Japan joined together. He was one of the defining figures of the Kyoto Nanga circle.

Ikeda Keisen (池田桂仙): Literati Painting in Kyōto

Ikeda Keisen (池田桂仙, 1863–1931) was a Japanese painter of the Nanga school, Japanese literati painting. His personal name was Katsujirō. Painting was in his blood: his father Ikeda Unshō was likewise a Nanga painter and served as an assistant instructor for literati painting at the Kyōto Prefectural Painting School.

Training at the Prefectural Painting School

In 1874 Keisen moved to Kyōto with his father and received his training at the same school where his father taught. This institution, founded in 1880, was the first state painting school in Japan and an attempt to convert the traditional master–disciple teaching into structured instruction. The fact that Nanga was represented there as a subject in its own right secured it a standing in Kyōto that it no longer held in Tōkyō.

The Founding of the Nihon Nangain in 1921

In 1921 Keisen was among the founders of the Nihon Nangain, in which literati painters from all across Japan joined together – alongside him, among others, Komuro Suiun and Mizuta Chikuho. The occasion was concrete: in the state-run exhibition system, Nanga found hardly any place left, and an institution of its own was the only way to hold exhibitions and train new talent. The Nihon Nangain exists to this day.

The Waterfall as a Touchstone of Ink Painting

A waterfall in reduced ink painting poses a paradoxical task: the water itself is not painted. It emerges as a reserved blank area between the rocks, and everything depends on how this reserved area is rendered. In literati painting, such a motif is considered a touchstone, because there is no coloring and no accessory detail behind which uncertainty could hide. Such hanging scrolls are not bound to any season and can be hung year-round.