Yamaguchi Sekkei (Japanese: 山口雪渓) also known as Yamaguchi Sōsetsu (山口宗雪) (1644/48, Kyoto - 22 October 1732, Kyoto) was a Japanese artist of the middle Edo period. He sometimes went under the names Baian (梅庵) or Hakuin (白隠).

From Eight Views of the Xiao and Xiang Rivers (right: "Autumn Moon over Dongting Lake", left: "Night Rain on the Xiao and Xiang")

Life and work

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Although his year of birth is generally considered to be 1644, documents at Kiyomizu-dera suggest that it may have been 1648 or even 1649.

It has been said that he was a great admirer of the artists Muqi (Chinese:牧谿) or "Mokkei" in Japanese, and Sesshū (雪舟) and that he created his art name by combining characters from both of their names.[1] It is also believed that he was a student of Kanō Einō.

He didn't paint in the prevailing styles of his time, but rather used traditional styles to create his own. Among his best known works are a pair of screens depicting "Autumnal Maples" in Daigo-ji, which were shown in Berlin in 1939 as part of the Exhibition of Japanese Art [de]. They are registered as an Important Cultural Property.

Also notable are the murals in the Myōshin-ji. They comprise fifteen landscapes with figures, sixteen scenes with flowers and birds and twelve portraits of Buddhist saints. They are not accessible to the public.

References

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  1. ^ "YAMAGUCHI SEKKEI (1644 - 1732): FLOWERING PRUNE AND BIRD - Gallery Zacke". www.zacke.at.

Further reading

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  • Tazawa, Yutaka: "Yamaguchi Sekkei". In: Biographical Dictionary of Japanese Art. Kodansha International, 1981. ISBN 0-87011-488-3.
  • Laurance P. Roberts: "Sekkei". In: A Dictionary of Japanese Artists. Weatherhill, 1976. ISBN 0-8348-0113-2.
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  Media related to Yamaguchi Sekkei at Wikimedia Commons