Screen depicting a dragon and waves on one side, and a landscape on the other side
Date18th century (side with dragons) - 19th century (side with landscape)
MediumSix-fold screen; ink, colors, and silver on paper
DimensionsOverall (folded): 67 3/8 × 25 1/8 × 4 1/4 inches (171.1 × 63.8 × 10.8 cm)
CultureJapanese
ClassificationsPaintings
Credit LineGift of Carolyn Thelander Gittelson, Class of 1951
Terms
- Paintings
- Six-fold screen: ink, color, and silver
- Landscapes
- Dragons
- Water
- Waves
- Brooks
- Paper
- Japanese
Object number2004.034 a,b
Label CopyChinese ink-painting styles were promoted by artists of the Kano school, a hereditary lineage that dominated Japanese painting from the sixteenth through nineteenth centuries. Large, bold ink paintings of dragons among clouds or waves were popular for adorning the interiors of castles, where they symbolized ruling power, or for temples, where dragons represent protectors of Buddhism. Depicted among clouds, the mythical creatures are bringers of rain, while dragons among waves signify their association with the Dragon King of the Sea, as the guardians of jewels such as the pearl of wisdom, and Buddhist texts.
Collections
18th century (side with dragons) - 19th century (side with landscape)
Nozawa Teiu
Tosa Mitsuyoshi
late 19th century
Yamaguchi Soken
Unidentified artist
early 18th century
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