male figure sitting cross-legged rests his chin in his left hand and is surrounded by fine women and several rickshaws; the man wears a tall black hat and the women have hair of various colors that flow all the way to the ground; three gold hilltops at upper right

Hikaru Genji, 1930

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In this late painting, Otake Chikuha took a very unusual approach to a subject that has fascinated Japanese artists since the classical Heian period (794–1185)—namely, the Tale of Genji and its titular character, Hikaru Genji.

Otake began training as a painter when he was only five years old, studying the brush styles of famous Nanga-school painters. As a teenager he relocated from rural northeast Japan to cosmopolitan Tokyo, where he shifted his attention to the Japanese painting and woodblock print tradition called ukiyo-e and, in the early 1900s, was briefly among the most popular painters active in the city. After the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 he refocused again, turning his attention to the Italian modernist movement Futurism.

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Details
Title
Hikaru Genji
Artist Life
1878 - 1934
Role
Artist
Accession Number
2015.114.33
Curator Approved

This record has been reviewed by our curatorial staff but may be incomplete. These records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.

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male figure sitting cross-legged rests his chin in his left hand and is surrounded by fine women and several rickshaws; the man wears a tall black hat and the women have hair of various colors that flow all the way to the ground; three gold hilltops at upper right