OBA GAKUSEN (1820-1899)
Meiji era (1868-1912), 1871Cranes; a kakejiku (hanging scroll), ink, mineral colours and gofun (calcified powdered clay) on silk in silk mounts, depicting two male and one female Manchurian cranes; signed at lower left Kanoto-hitsuji no koharu no hi utsusu Gakusen Kaku (Brushed on a day in October 1871 by Gakusen Crane) and sealed twice, the second seal Gakusen; fitted with a modern futomaki (large-diameter roller), a later wood inner tomobako box with a commendation dated 1982, and a lacquered outer box. Overall : 214cm x 86cm (84?in x 33 7/8in); image: 142cm x 63cm (55 7/8in x 24?in). (4).
注脚
Born in the Tokuyama Domain (present-day Yamaguchi Prefecture) the son of a swordsmith, Oba Gakusen completed a painting commission on behalf of his teacher, the local painter Asakura Nanryo (1575-1844), when he was only 11 years old. At 15 he began to study with a follower of Tani Buncho and then, at 18, joined the Kyoto studio of Oda Kaisen (1785-1852), who adopted him 12 years later. The present scroll, an accomplished contribution to a tradition of crane painting initiated by the great Kyoto artist Maruyama Okyo (1733-1795), was executed just before Gakusen moved from Kyoto to Tokyo and embarked on a successful career as a public artist, showing his work at official expositions and playing a major role in palace decoration projects.For a similar treatment of crane feathers by the artist, compare Shimonoseki Municipal Art Museum, Oba Gakusen to Meiji zenki Nihonga (Oba Gasen and Paintings in the First Half of Meiji Era), Shimonoseki, 1991, p.44, pl.no.42.