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StatsPortrait-Icon of Murasaki Shikibu (Murasaki Shikibu zu)
601
113.0cm x 55.0cm
kano minenobu (1662 – 1709)
Discover Kano Minenobu, a master of Japanese painting from the Kanō School. Admire his figures & landscapes – a key figure in art history.
Kano Minenobu depicts Murasaki Shikibu in action, wielding her brush, steadying her paper, and gazing down at her text, seemingly pleased with her work. Her ornate black lacquer desk has bowed legs and touches of gold. Over layers of colorful robes, she wears a pleated apron decorated with the scene of a curving shoreline dotted with pines. The image evokes Suma and Akashi as well as Sumiyoshi, whose shrine and resident deity play a pivotal role in The Tale of Genji. Above the figure, three painted cartouches bear inscriptions referring to Murasaki’s attainment of Buddhist insight concerning the nondualistic nature of phenomena. Commentators suggested this insight enabled her to produce a tale infused with an awareness of life’s impermanence.
About this artwork
- Title: Portrait-Icon of Murasaki Shikibu (Murasaki Shikibu zu)
- Artist: kano minenobu
- Year: 601
- Original dimensions: 113.0cm x 55.0cm
- Format: Tall
- Copyright status: Public domain
- Color intensity: Vivid
- Perceived brightness: brilliant
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