Kakinomoto no Hitomaro (ca. 662–710), One of the Three Gods of Poetry From the Spring Rain Collection (Harusame shū), vol. 1. Yashima Gakutei, ca. 1820’s
This is the last weekend for those of you in the New York area to see this incredible exhibition on view. Lucky for the rest of us the The Metropolitan Museum of Art has an online exhibition featuring 185 items.
What is brush writing?:
The art of brush writing in East Asia both encompasses and transcends the Western aesthetic concept of “calligraphy,”… Japan inherited from China a fascination with the artistic potential of inscribing characters with flexible animal-hair brushes while developing its own distinctive system for rendering poetry and prose written in the vernacular.
The exhibition showcases masterworks of brush-inscribed Japanese texts dating from the eleventh century to the present.
“High-Ranking Courtesan,” from the series Five Shades of Ink in the Northern Quarter (Hokkoku goshiki Zumi),. Kitagawa Utamaro, 1794–95.
“The Poet Ariwara no Narihira (825–880) and Ono no Komachi,” from the series Five Colors of Love for the Six Poetic Immortals (Goshiki-zome rokkasen). Kitagawa Utamaro, ca. 1798
Interior Scene with Books and Writing Implements. Unidentified Artist, 17th century
Chinese Boys Learning to Write and Paint. Katsushika Hokusai, ca. 1785
Beauty Writing a Letter. School of Iwasa Matabei, 17th century
The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Brush Writing in the Arts of Japan