Ink on paper
Mounted as a scroll painting in a late Edo period mounting
Japan, 1841
OKAMOTO Toyohiko (1773-1845) – Japanese painter
Depiction of a scholar's rock and prunus
Dimensions: 114.8 x 62.48 cm
Good condition

This Japanese scroll painting from the Edo period (1603-1868) by OKAMOTO Toyohiko (1773-1845) is quite interesting in that the motif used, a prunus concealed behind a moss or lichen-covered scholar's rock, is usually favoured by literati and nanga artists. The prunus is a symbol often seen in Chinese and Japanese literati objects and paintings, resembling the fungus thought to produce the elixir of life. The scroll was painted with sumi ink on paper and features an inscription saying the work was created in the Year of the Metal Ox during the Tenpo era (1830-1844), Chinese New Year, which would mean this scroll painting dates to 1841. It is signed by OKAMOTO Toyohiko with two seals, one reading Toyohiko on the top and another reading Yasuhiko, the artist’s other studio name, on the bottom.



Condition:

The scroll is in good condition with signs of age. Insect damage is visible in the central part of the scroll leading down from the honshi (painted area of the scroll) to the bottom of the mounting. The dimensions are 114.8 x 62.48 cm (length x width).



OKAMOTO Toyohiko (1773-1845)

OKAMOTO Toyohiko was born as the son of a Sake merchant and brewer in the present-day city of Kurashiki in Okayama Prefecture. Toyohiko became a student of MATSUMURA Goshun in Kyoto at the age of 25 and soon after, his skills flourished. Toyohiko's fame as a painter spread throughout the capital, rivaling that of the established artist KISHI Ganku. By about age 30, Toyohiko was given an opportunity to sit in a gathering with noted artists such as TANI Buncho and KISHI Ganku and poets TACHIBANAChikage and KAGAWA Kageki, and presented a painting during this event. It is thought that thanks to this opportunity, Toyohiko was commissioned to produce works for the Shugakuin Rikyu palace in the north-eastern section of the imperial capital. Although OKAMOTO Toyohiko is categorized as a Shijo school artist, he inherited the styles used by MARUYAMA Okyo, the founder of the Maruyama school, and YOSA Buson from his master MATSUMURA Goshun.

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