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Conservation of painting: Japan  

Claire Illouz

Painting conservation in Japan has always required the application of outstanding skills, not only in the presentation and mounting of paintings but also in their conservation. No painting, whether mounted on a folding screen, a sliding door or a horizontal or vertical scroll, can be worked on or moved unless certain operations are carried out to ensure its safe conservation. The hyogushi (‘master-framer’) is not therefore merely a picture framer but a highly qualified professional with complete mastery of the key: paper, silk, mineral pigments, ink, animal glue and starch paste, as well as wood and metal. He must also possess historical and regional knowledge of the different types of traditional mountings (see Mounting, §1). It takes a minimum of ten years for a craftsman to become thoroughly proficient as a hyogushi. Increasingly, Western restorers have shown interest in the vital and wide-ranging role of the hyogushi and in the techniques used....

Article

Conservation of sculpture: Japan  

Kyotaro Nishikawa

In accordance with the Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties (Bunkazai hogohō), important works of art in Japan are designated and protected as National Treasures (Kohuhō) or Important Cultural Properties (Jūyō bunkazai). Among these are 2525 items of sculpture; in each item there are generally 3, 4, 8 or 12 individual statues, although the numbers vary widely. Wooden objects number 2200, those of bronze and iron 197, dry lacquer 49, clay 20, and stone or miscellaneous other materials 20 (see also Japan: Materials and techniques in sculpture).

Summers in Japan are hot, with high humidity, and the winters cold, with low humidity, although the relative humidity in Japan throughout the year is higher than in either Europe or North America. Repeated changes in humidity cause corrosion of iron, decay and deformation of wood and desiccation and shrinkage of joints. Insects and worms cause porousness, and destructive mould leaves stains. Sculptures kept in museums are of course stored in controlled conditions, with a standard temperature of 22°C or lower and a relative humidity of 60% ±5%. Most Buddhist sculptures were objects of worship and were therefore kept in temples constructed of wood, or in the open, in which case they were not preserved. The wooden temple buildings that have survived are those that were adapted to the climatic conditions. The surroundings of the temples were kept clean, and dust carried by the wind was removed from the images. At some temples the doors to small shrines containing Buddhist images were opened only once each year or even less often (there are even temples that possess secret Buddhas) and these images have retained their colour wonderfully, as well as their original form in many cases. The surfaces of some wooden sculptures were left bare, but most were painted, and, because of such effects as shrinkage, the paint on wood images flaked or chalked and peeled easily, weakening the piece....

Article

Isshi  

Japanese, 17th century, male.

Born 1608; died 1646.

Painter.

Isshi was a Zen monk who studied the Zen doctrine with Takuan. He painted portraits, and was also responsible for the restoration of the Yamagani temple at Omi (modern Shiga Prefecture).

Article

Kiyochika  

Japanese, 19th – 20th century, male.

Born 1847; died 1915.

Painter, print artist. Historical subjects, figures, genre scenes, still-lifes.

Kiyochika was the son of a low-ranking samurai who lost his inheritance after the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Largely self-taught, he especially admired the prints of Hiroshige (...

Article

Ren Renfa  

Stephen L. Little

[Jen Jen-fazi Ziminghao Yueshan Daoren]

(b Qinglongzhen [now Qingpu, Songjiang, Shanghai Municipality], 1255; d 1328).

Chinese painter. Under the Yuan dynasty (1279–1368) he became an official, rising to the level of Vice-President of the River Conservation Bureau. He was famous for his paintings of horses, which were much admired by both his Mongol and Chinese patrons. In horse painting he followed in the tradition of the Song-period (960–1279) artist Li Gonglin, which was characterized by use of the “iron-wire” line and a minimum of shading. Ultimately, however, Ren’s style can be traced to the Tang (618–907 ce) painters Yan Liben and Han Gan.

Ren’s earliest surviving painting is dated 1280, indicating that he was a mature artist by his mid-twenties. Although he worked as an official under the alien Mongol emperors, he was capable of paintings that incorporated clear political messages. The most famous is Fat and Lean Horses (Beijing, Pal. Mus.), in which, according to his inscription, the fat horse represents the self-satisfied, wealthy official and the lean one the humble, poor, self-deprecating official. Most extant works by Ren are depictions of horses, but ...