Ink Battle, 1871/89
Kawanabe Kyōsai
Ink and light colour on paper
The idea of an ink battle was perhaps inspired by a New Year’s event at the family mansion of the shogun’s retainer, Sōma, where they applied ink on the faces of guests to wish them a safe and healthy year. Here, the rival groups are depicted as medieval courtiers and warriors.
Kyōsai’s contemporaries might have related the image to the battles of the 1860s between the Tokugawa shogunate’s allies and the emperor’s supporters.
[Royal Academy]
From the exhibition
Kyōsai: The Israel Goldman Collection
(March — June 2022)
Known for his independent spirit, Kawanabe Kyōsai (1831-1889) is among Japan’s most important master painters. Witty, energetic and imaginative, his art continues to influence numerous artistic styles today, from manga to tattoo art.
Overlooked for decades, particularly compared to his earlier counterparts, Hokusai and Hiroshige, Kyōsai is now celebrated for his ability to bridge popular culture and traditional art.
Having initially studied under ukiyo-e artist Kuniyoshi, he combined his subsequent academic training to create his own revolutionary style, creating images from the terrifying and awe-inspiring, to the sweet and endearing.
Drawing from one of the finest collections of the artist’s work in the world, this exhibition brings together highly finished paintings, woodcut prints and illustrated books, as well as impromptu paintings (sekiga) created at sometimes raucous calligraphy and painting parties (shogakai).
[Royal Academy]
Ink Battle, 1871/89
Kawanabe Kyōsai
Ink and light colour on paper
The idea of an ink battle was perhaps inspired by a New Year’s event at the family mansion of the shogun’s retainer, Sōma, where they applied ink on the faces of guests to wish them a safe and healthy year. Here, the rival groups are depicted as medieval courtiers and warriors.
Kyōsai’s contemporaries might have related the image to the battles of the 1860s between the Tokugawa shogunate’s allies and the emperor’s supporters.
[Royal Academy]
From the exhibition
Kyōsai: The Israel Goldman Collection
(March — June 2022)
Known for his independent spirit, Kawanabe Kyōsai (1831-1889) is among Japan’s most important master painters. Witty, energetic and imaginative, his art continues to influence numerous artistic styles today, from manga to tattoo art.
Overlooked for decades, particularly compared to his earlier counterparts, Hokusai and Hiroshige, Kyōsai is now celebrated for his ability to bridge popular culture and traditional art.
Having initially studied under ukiyo-e artist Kuniyoshi, he combined his subsequent academic training to create his own revolutionary style, creating images from the terrifying and awe-inspiring, to the sweet and endearing.
Drawing from one of the finest collections of the artist’s work in the world, this exhibition brings together highly finished paintings, woodcut prints and illustrated books, as well as impromptu paintings (sekiga) created at sometimes raucous calligraphy and painting parties (shogakai).
[Royal Academy]