A Nanga Literati Hanging Scroll by Yamamoto Baisō (1846 - 1921)
- Artist:
- Yamamoto Baisō (1846 - 1921)
- Era:
- Meiji
- Price:
- $1,500
- Inquire:
- Contact gallery
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An elegant antique Japanese hanging scroll from Meiji depicting a serene landscape in ink on silk, composed in the literati manner with softly layered mountain forms, distant peaks, and a quiet waterside pavilion nestled among pines. Executed with refined brushwork and subtle tonal modulation, the painting evokes the contemplative spirit of Nanga painting. Both poetic and meditative, this scroll is a fine example of the enduring appeal of Japanese scholar-painter aesthetics in hanging scroll format.
Yamamoto Baisō (1846–1921) was a Japanese painter born in late Edo, best known as a literati-style artist working in the Nanga tradition. Born in Owari Province, in present-day Aichi Prefecture, he came from a family of tabi merchants. He studied first under Nukina Kaioku and later under Mitani Setsugan, developing a style rooted in Chinese literati painting and the study of Yuan and Ming models. Baisō excelled especially in landscapesand bird-and-flower painting, and came to be regarded, together with Yoshitsugu Haizan and Kodama Katei, as one of the three major regional Nanga painters of his time. His reputation extended well beyond his native region: in 1907 he won second prize at the Tokyo Industrial Exposition for Spring Landscape, and in the same year received third prize at the First Bunten for Autumn Landscape. He also served as a judge for the Seiha Dōshikai exhibition and later for the Bunten, reflecting his standing in the Japanese art world. A member of the Japan Painting Association, Yamamoto Baisō remained an important figure in the continuation of literati painting into modern Japan. Today, works by Yamamoto are held by museums and in private collections around the world including the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), Handa City Museum, the Homma Museum of Art, the Honolulu Museum of Art, and the Clark Center for Japanese Art and Culture collection.
In fine antique condition, this hanging scroll is 23 inches wide (58cm), and 77 inches tall (195cm). It comes with its original wood box and several inserts with Japanese calligraphy including the artist's name, a letter written from Yamamoto to the buyer of the scroll (Fujimoto), and with what appears to be a receipt. The poem, roughly translated reads: In a little pavilion among springs and rocks, the mind grows clear, far removed from worldly dust. Facing the vastness of heaven and earth, even this small space feels as boundless as the universe.
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