Accession Number
1982/1.196

Title
Landscape after Lan Ying

Artist(s)
Ōkura Ryūzan

Object Creation Date
1st half of the 19th century

Medium & Support
hanging scroll, ink and light color on silk

Dimensions
61 1/8 in x 19 5/16 in (155.3 cm x 49 cm);2 15/16 in x 29 1/8 in x 3 1/4 in (7.4 cm x 74 cm x 8.2 cm)

Credit Line
Museum purchase made possible by the Margaret Watson Parker Art Collection Fund

Label copy
Ôkura Ryûzan was eighth-generation head of a wealthy saké brewing family who lived on the outskirts of Nagoya. He studied calligraphy with Rai San’yô (see no. 15), and was both pupil and patron of Nakabayashi Chikutô. While Chikutô became a professional artist who produced paintings in great quantity, Ryûzan had the luxury of painting primarily for self-amusement.
The inscription here tells us that Ryûzan’s landscape draws on a model by the Ming artist Lan Ying, that was inspired in turn by a famous work by the great Yuan literati painter Huang Gongwang. Huang’s paintings are typically built up slowly and methodically with layers of dry, silvery ink; Lan’s innovation was to add color and wetter ink, for a more decorative effect. Ryûzan’s companions enjoyed deciphering the references in this painting, much as modern film critics and audiences revel in recognizing quotations from earlier classics.
Maribeth Graybill, for the exhibition "Japanese Visions of China," 9/21/02 - 1/26/03

Subject matter
Ôkura Ryûzan was eighth-generation head of a wealthy saké brewing family who lived on the outskirts of Nagoya. He studied calligraphy with Rai San’yô (see no. 15), and was both pupil and patron of Nakabayashi Chikutô. While Chikutô became a professional artist who produced paintings in great quantity, Ryûzan had the luxury of painting primarily for self-amusement.
The inscription here tells us that Ryûzan’s landscape draws on a model by the Ming artist Lan Ying, that was inspired in turn by a famous work by the great Yuan literati painter Huang Gongwang. Huang’s paintings are typically built up slowly and methodically with layers of dry, silvery ink; Lan’s innovation was to add color and wetter ink, for a more decorative effect. Ryûzan’s companions enjoyed deciphering the references in this painting, much as modern film critics and audiences revel in recognizing quotations from earlier classics.
Maribeth Graybill, for the exhibition "Japanese Visions of China," 9/21/02 - 1/26/03

Physical Description
There are mountains with trees and houses dispersed. At the bottom of the mountain is a river, there are boulders dispersed along the shore. In the upper right corner of the hanging scroll, there is an inscription and a signature. There is a blue design for the border.

Primary Object Classification
Painting

Primary Object Type
hanging scroll

Additional Object Classification(s)
Painting

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.

Keywords
Japan
Landscapes
bridges
bridges (built works)
hanging scroll
hanging scrolls
houses
ink
lodging houses
mountains
trees
villages
water