Description
Folding screens served as temporary dividers in traditional Japanese open-plan architectural spaces. This pair was inspired by Japan’s most celebrated work of literature, the Tale of Genji, written by Murasaki Shikibu, an attendant to the empress in the early 11th-century imperial court. The novel follows the love life of the “Shining Prince” Genji and delves into the psychological states of his many companions. Distinct episodes are nestled within a matrix of golden clouds and landscape elements. Each screen includes six episodes presented in a nonlinear fashion, capturing scattered highlights of the story.
Provenance
William G. Mather [1857-1951], Cleveland, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art (?-1948); The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1948-)
Accession Number
1948.124
Medium
Pair of six-panel folding screens; ink, color, and gold on gilded paper
Dimensions
Image: 154.4 x 351.2 cm (60 13/16 x 138 1/4 in.)
Classification
Painting
Credit Line
Gift of William G. Mather
Tags
Painting Baroque (1600–1750) Ink Panel Painting Gold Leaf Paper
Background & Context
Background Story
Scenes from the Tale of Genji from the late 1700s is a Japanese painting depicting scenes from the Tale of Genji, following the long Japanese tradition of painting scenes from Murasaki Shikibu's 11th-century novel that is one of the most important subjects in Japanese art. The late 1700s date places this in the Edo period, when the tradition of painting scenes from the Tale of Genji was being continued in the workshops of the Rinpa school and other painting traditions, and the Genji subject connects the painting to the long Japanese tradition of depicting scenes from the world's first novel.
Cultural Impact
Scenes from the Tale of Genji is important in the history of Japanese painting because it demonstrates the enduring tradition of painting scenes from Murasaki Shikibu's 11th-century novel that is one of the most important subjects in Japanese art. The tradition of painting scenes from the Tale of Genji—representing the elegant court life of the Heian period—is one of the most enduring subjects in Japanese painting, and the late 1700s painting shows this tradition being continued in the Edo period.
Why It Matters
Scenes from the Tale of Genji is a Japanese painting from the late 1700s depicting scenes from Murasaki Shikibu's 11th-century novel—one of the most important subjects in Japanese art. The painting shows the enduring tradition of depicting scenes from the world's first novel that was one of the most important subjects in Japanese painting throughout the Edo period.
