Chrysanthemums and Autumnal Plants

The principal subjects of this screen are several varieties of chrysanthemum (kiku), a flower closely associated with the imperial family of Japan. The white chrysanthemums are rendered in a raised technique (moriage) using pigment ground from oyster shells. Several autumnal plants (akikusa, literally “autumnal grasses”) are also depicted in a grouping at the far right and elsewhere around the chrysanthemums. One of them is a white-flowering variety of the bush clover (shirohagi; Lespedeza japonica). Another is Japanese silver grass (susuki; Miscanthus sinensis), with its gracefully arching leaves and seed heads. At the lower portions of the two far left panels are Chinese bellflowers (kikyō; Platycodon grandiflorus).

The silver-leaf background indicates that the flowers and plants are being viewed under moonlight. Tawaraya Sōtatsu (c.1570–c.1640), one of the founders of the Rinpa school of Japanese painting, introduced a technique of overlapping wet pigments that blur at the edges (tarashikomi). The artist of this folding screen applied the effect for the chrysanthemums’ leaves. At the lower left corner is a round seal impressed in red reading I’nen. This seal continued to be employed by Sōtatsu’s workshop for some time after his death.