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Tiger and Dragon

Hasegawa Tohaku

Tiger and Dragon exhibition

Tiger and Dragon

High-resolution facsimiles

Material
printed on washi paper
Period of creation
Tsuzuri Project Stage 8 2014–2015
Recipient
Oita Prefectural Art Museum

Original

Artist
Hasegawa Tohaku
Historical era
Momoyama (17th Century)
Material
ink on washi paper
Medium
Pair of six-fold screens
Size
Each screen H153.5 × W333.2 cm
Collection
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Description

Divided by a wave that stretches across both screens, a dragon calling forth the clouds and a tiger bringing the wind nervously face one another. This masterpiece is one pair of six-folding screens collected by the great art collectors Ernest Fenollosa and William Bigelow. The two came to Japan in the Meiji Period and established a Japanese art collection at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Fenollosa collected the right screen, while Bigelow collected the left. Hasegawa Tohaku was a painter active in the Momoyama Period. As the head of the "Hasegawa School," he is known to have aggressively challenged the group of painters affiliated with Kano Eitoku's "Kano School," which dominated the art world at the time. This work is known to be painted by Tohaku in 1606, a few days before his death. This is assumed from the seal, which reads, "Five generations from Sesshu, Hasegawa Hogen Tohaku, 68 years old, brush of Hasegawa Tohaku." Nonetheless, we can feel his ageless spirit from the dynamic structure and the strong strokes across the large screens.

How the Works Are Created

How the Works Are Created

This section introduces the production process of high resolution facsimiles by combining Canon’s latest imaging technology and the authentic craftsmanship of Kyoto in the Tsuzuri Project.

About the Tsuzuri Project

About the Tsuzuri Project

This section shares the significance and passion behind the Tsuzuri Project and how we utilize the high resolution facsimiles of precious cultural assets, which are designated as national treasures and important cultural assets, and Japanese artworks that have left Japan.