At Ease in the Countryside: Scholars and Fishermen

Object Details

• Artist

  Yamamoto Baiitsu 山本梅逸 (1783-1856)

• Label

  On the screen at right, a grove of stately pines, two Chinese scholars enjoy the music of the koto, while young attendants prepare tea for their enjoyment. Playing music on the qin was considered to be one of the four noble pursuits of the Chinese scholar, together with calligraphy, painting and chess. The ideal was adopted by the Japanese, and is beautifully expressed in this serene and dignified painting. The pleasures of rural life are a frequent theme of Chinese scholar-painters. For them, as well as for the Japanese Nanga painters who adopted their ideals, the lives of fishermen represented freedom from the burdens of official duties. The lively and convival mood of the scene on the left screen contrasts to the quiet dignity of the screen of Scholars in a Pine Grove.

  The painter, Yamamoto Baiitsu, was a native of the city of Nagoya who studied Chinese paintings of the Ming and Ch'ing dynasties through his association with a wealthy collector. These screens are considered to be one of the finest surviving works by Baiitsu. Especially in the fine brushwork depicting the pine needles, his mastery of Chinese painting techniques can be appreciated.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Japanese Screens (March 2007 to January 3, 2016)

  Japanese Screens (August 13, 1997 to May 4, 1998)

  Japanese Nanga School Painting (November 7, 1985 to March 9, 1987)

  Summer Whites: Japanese Porcelain (July 1, 1983 to March 15, 1984)

  Japanese Art (September 20, 1982 to April 15, 1983)

  Japanese Screens (May 22, 1980 to October 8, 1980)

  Japanese Art (July 1, 1974 to April 10, 1978)

  Japanese Art—Painted Screens (August 18, 1967 to May 2, 1973)

  Japanese Art, Galleries 3, 4, and 5 (January 1, 1963 to September 16, 1970)

  Japanese Screen Paintings (March 10, 1961 to January 1, 1963)

• Origin

  Japan

• Credit Line

  Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment

• Type

  Painting

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

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• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1700s, 1710s, 1720s, 1770s, 1780s, 1790s, 1730s, 1740s, 1750s, 1760s, 1800s, 1810s, 1820s, 1830s, 1610s, 1650s, 1640s, 1630s, 1620s, 1690s, 1840s, 1850s, 1680s, 1670s, 1860s, 1660s

• Name

  Yamamoto, Baiitsu

• Place

  Japan

• Topic

  Landscapes, Art, Scholar, Edo period, Japan, (1600 - 1868), Japanese Art, Children, Fishing

• Culture

  Japanese

• Object Type

  Paintings