Cranes

Object Details

Artist

Ogata Korin 尾形光琳 (1658-1716)

Label

Cranes, symbolic of longevity in East Asia, move in dignified procession toward the center of this pair of screens. Stylized water patterns in darkened tones of silver and blue occupy the upper corners of the screens. Gray cranes, native to eastern Siberia and Manchuria, migrate to Japan every winter.

The striking, unusual symmetry of these screen paintings is reflected in several similar paintings of cranes attributed to Ogata Korin and nineteenth-century painters of the Rimpa school. Korin, whose brother was the ceramic artist Ogata Kenzan (1663-1743), was the artist whose name was later adapted to designate the Rimpa School. The school's designs featured innovative ideas about design and materials. A native of Kyoto, Korin returned there in the final years of his life after spending several years in Edo (modern Tokyo) seeking new patrons. The style of these screens is associated with the large compositions of Korin's late years.

Provenance

By at least 1936-?

Baron Ōkura Kishichirō (1882-1963), method of acquisition unknown [1]

About 1936-1955

The object’s ownership and whereabouts are unknown

?-no later than 1955

M. Watanabe, method of acquisition unknown [2]

By 1955

Oriental Art Gallery, New York, purchased from M. Watanabe, in Japan [3]

From 1956

Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from Oriental Art Gallery, New York [4]

Notes:

[1] See Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, “Illustrated Catalogue of a Special Loan Exhibition of Art Treasures from Japan” [exhibition catalogue] (Tokyo: Sanseido Press, 1936), cat. 89A-B. Baron Ōkura Kishichirō was a Japanese nobleman and an industrialist, hotelier, and art collector. He was the son of entrepreneur Ōkura Kihachirō.

[2] See object file for February 1, 1956 letter from Joseph U. Seo to A.G. Wenley, explaining the role of Alfred E. Simmons in the negotiations for the purchase of the screens. Seo wrote, “Mr. Simmons, a friend and business associate of the owner of the screens in Tokyo, is leaving for Japan Monday February 6th, therefore, in order to accept your arrangement, I was obliged to have him talk directly with you, concerning the terms of the sale of the screens, so that he could get the information first hand and convince the party in Japan of the sincerity of the transaction and subsequent payment in July 1956.” In a February 4, 1956 letter from Simmons to Seo, also in object file, Simmons wrote, “We have spoken to Mr. Watanabe two times since your recent visit, and I am anticipating speaking with you before I leave. I have completely explained all detail to our mutual friend and he has agreed with me that the final plan as outlined is quite acceptable.” Alfred E. Simmons was a New York businessman, president of the Continental Brass Products Corporation, which had offices in New York and Tokyo, Japan. Mr. M. Watanabe is presumably Mitsue Watanabe, owner of Oriental Art Gallery in Tokyo. Joseph U. Seo (1911-1998) was a Japanese American dealer of Chinese and Japanese Art. He had his own business in New York, Seo & Company, until about 1950, when he became the New York representative for the Tokyo-based Oriental Art Gallery, owned by Mitsue Watanabe. See also note 3.

[3] See March 1, 1955, letter from H. Elise Buckman (FGA) to Seo, acknowledging receipt of the six-fold screens attributed to Korin, in object file. See also note 2.

[4] The Freer Gallery of Art paid Oriental Art Gallery in installments, the first on February 1, 1956, and the last on July 5, 1956, and marked approved by the Secretary on November 4, 1955; see object file for invoices. See also note 2.

Research updated March 31, 2023

Collection

Freer Gallery of Art Collection

Exhibition History

Rinpa Screens (February 25, 2023 to February 24, 2024)

Japanese Screens (March 2007 to January 3, 2016)

Japanese Screens (May 9, 1993 to November 13, 1995)

Japanese Screens (February 11, 1983 to July 19, 1988)

Rimpa Screens (October 9, 1980 to December 21, 1981)

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

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

Untitled Exhibition, Japanese Screens, 1957 (March 20, 1957 to March 30, 1960)

Untitled, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 1936 (1936)

Previous custodian or owner

Baron Kishichiro Okura (1882-1963)

Mitsue Watanabe

Oriental Art Gallery

Credit Line

Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment

late 17th-early 18th century

Period

Edo period

Accession Number

F1956.20-21

Restrictions & Rights

Usage conditions apply

Type

Painting

Medium

Ink, color, gold, and silver on paper

Dimensions

H x W (each): 166 x 371 cm (65 3/8 x 146 1/16 in)

Origin

Japan

Related Online Resources

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See more items in

Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection

Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery

Topic

crane

Edo period (1615 - 1868)

Japan

Japanese Art

Record ID

fsg_F1956.20-21

Metadata Usage (text)

Usage conditions apply

GUID (Link to Original Record)

http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ye35e8e0e3d-c50c-45f9-8e3c-4e02c63fe7dd