Artists

Kanō Chikanobu

Kanō Chikanobu (狩野周信, 1660–1728) was the third head of the Kobikichō Kanō house and instructed Shōgun Tokugawa Yoshimune. The name is read Chikanobu, not Shūshin.

Published on: Sep 15, 2025

Kakemono by Kanō Chikanobu: pagoda on a cliff above banks of mist, in ink on silk. — Pagoda on the cliff – kakemono by Kanō Chikanobu (狩野周信) (detail)

In a nutshell

Kanō Chikanobu (狩野周信) was a Japanese painter of the Edo period (1660–1728). He was the son of Kanō Tsunenobu; his mother was a daughter of Kanō Yasunobu. As the third head of the Kobikichō-Kanō house, he belonged to the highest rank of shogunate painters. After the death of his father in 1713, he instructed Shōgun Tokugawa Yoshimune in painting. In 1719 he received the honorary clerical rank of Hōgen and bore the title Chūmukyō. His brothers were Kanō Minenobu and Kanō Sukenobu, his son was Kanō Furunobu. The name 周信 is read Chikanobu; the form Shūshin is a variant reading.

Kanō Chikanobu (狩野周信): Third Head of the Kobikichō House

Kanō Chikanobu (狩野周信, 1660–1728) was a Japanese painter of the mid-Edo period and served as the third head of the Kobikichō Kanō house – one of the four Oku-eshi houses that ranked immediately below the shogunate. He died in 1728 at the age of 69.

On the Reading: Chikanobu, Not Shūshin

The characters 周信 are read Chikanobu. In object descriptions and inventory lists, the form "Shūshin" is frequently encountered, which is based on the Sino-Japanese readings of the individual characters. Both forms refer to the same painter; the transmitted name form is Chikanobu.

Embedded in the Web of Relationships of the Kanō Houses

Chikanobu's family relationships exemplify how closely interconnected the Kanō houses were with one another: his father was Kanō Tsunenobu, his mother a daughter of Kanō Yasunobu, that is, the youngest brother of Kanō Naonobu. His brothers were Kanō Minenobu and Kanō Sukenobu – both bore the gō Zuisen (随川) –, his son was Kanō Furunobu, whose own son Kanō Norinobu in turn led the house to its greatest flourishing.

Teacher of the Shōgun and Bearer of Rank

After his father's death in 1713, Chikanobu took over his father's duty of instructing the shōgun in painting – the recipient was Tokugawa Yoshimune. In 1719 he received the ecclesiastical honorary rank of Hōgen; alongside this he held the title Chūmukyō. Such rank designations frequently appear in the signature and are useful for the chronological placement of a work: a sheet signed with the Hōgen title cannot have been created before 1719.

Ink Landscape and Empty Ground

A pagoda on a cliff, mist below, nothing else: the Kanō landscape of the mid-Edo period thrives on how much it leaves out. The unpainted silk ground is not a remainder but mist, water, and expanse all at once; the few forms that are set down gain their weight only through this emptiness. This is ideal for the tokonoma, because such a painting opens up the space rather than filling it. Anyone seeking Japanese hanging scrolls in ink should pay attention to the ratio of painted to unpainted surface — it determines the effect more than the motif.