Kuniyoshi | Lingering Snow at Ishiyama
歌川国芳 Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1798–1861)
耀武八景 石山暮雪
Lingering Snow at Ishiyama,from the series of Military Brilliance for the Eight Views
1852
木版画｜纵绘大判｜36cm x 25cm
Woodblock-print ｜Oban tata-e｜36cm x 25cm
品相完好；轻微褪色
Fine condition; slight fading
$1,200
受到中国潇湘八景这一传统题材的影响，日本也有许多各地自评的“八景”，如近江八景，金泽八景等等。这些八景依然沿用着潇湘八景的胜景名称（夜雨、落雁、晚钟、晴岚、暮雪、夕照、秋月、归帆），只是将地名本土化了。如本幅作品名中的“石山暮雪”，便是化用了潇湘八景中的“江天暮雪”。本画中的主角铃木重幸，并非是真实存在的历史人物，而是在《石山军鉴》，《摄州石山军记》等历史小说中登场的虚构人物。原型应为日本战国传奇武将，铁炮（即火枪）达人——铃木重秀。接触过日本战国历史的朋友就知道，这可是一位令大名鼎鼎的织田信长都颇为头疼的狠角色。他也被普遍认为是著名的战国火枪武装佣兵团——“杂贺众”的一任首领“杂贺孙一”。在落满积雪的芦花荡中，重幸身披蓑衣，面色凝重，左手轻轻拨开芦苇丛，右手托一柄火枪，一边观察，一边靠近着前方的目标——织田信长。在画面上方的狂歌，用更加浪漫的笔法，描绘了这次刺杀：“石山积雪，如辛夷花盛放之仲春；飞雪夕暮，穿芦荡而击白鹰”。不过，这次行动并没有成功，主人公重幸没能击杀那只“白鹰”，不幸被砍杀身亡。唉，又是一位悲情英雄。
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Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1798–1861)
Warriors, ghosts, crabs and cats.
The woodblock print designs of Utagawa Kuniyoshi, one of Ukiyo-e’s most vibrant and creative 19th Century masters, encompass more than that – he depicted landscapes and beautiful women, too – but those are the first genres that come to mind when contemplating this wonderful and eccentric genius and his sprawling, timeless body of work.
From an early age, the young Kuniyoshi was fascinated by drama and history – with a big helping of the supernatural. He loved nature and animals, too – especially cats: again and again they pop up in designs throughout his career (adding a premium to the prices those woodblock prints fetch today). Starting out as a relatively traditional student of the Utagawa school, he soon developed his hugely energetic style, full of dynamic action, and eventually passed it on to his many students – Yoshitoshi being the most famous. Along with Kunisada and Hiroshige, he was among the most prolific of all Ukiyo-e artists.
He was born Yoshisaburō on January 1, 1798 to a silk dyer. Some say his father’s rich patterns influenced his bold, colorful designs. He always loved legends and history. By age 12 he had shown a talent for drawing and become a student of the great Toyokuni, who gave him the name Kuniyoshi. He also studied the Tosa, Kano and Maruyama painting styles.
It took awhile for him to find his place in the thriving Ukiyo-e world. Then in the 1820s he produced his first epic warrior triptychs, and his career success was assured. He often gave legendary heroes fanciful and intricate tattoos of his own design, starting a style craze in Edo.
He eventually expanded genres to include animal studies and landscapes. His wonderful oban yoko-e series of “Famous Views of the Eastern Capital” is especially interesting for its use of Western motifs, such as shadows, billowing clouds and a low vantage point to create atmospheric perspective. While these efforts weren’t always entirely successful, they still resulted in wonderfully lively Ukiyo-e designs.
In all, he produced nearly 250 series for 150 publishers.
During the Tempo reforms of the 1840s, which dramatically censured woodblock prints, he boldly skirted rules barring depictions of actors by putting their faces on various animals, such as turtles.
He died at the age of 63 in April 1861 in his home in Genyadana.
Partial citation: Marks, Andreas, Japanese Woodblock Prints, Artists, Publishers and Masterworks: 1680-1900 (Tuttle; 2010)