rooster standing in wide stance, with head down by legs, watching a chick at bottom; hen and two other chicks to the R; flowering pink bush at R extending to top

Rooster and Family, 1797

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The numerous extant paintings of chickens and roosters by Itō Jakuchū include a number of heavily pigmented examples such as this work, which focuses on the interactions between the members of a feathered family. As here, Jakuchū draws our eye with the dynamic shape of the rooster’s tail feathers and the birds’ colorful plumage.

The depiction of chickens and roosters was a lifelong passion for Itō Jakuchū, a prolific painter and devout Zen Buddhist. An inscription on his tombstone written by a close friend, the Zen monk Daiten, records that Jakuchū kept an assortment of fowl and frequently made sketches of them.

Details
Title
Rooster and Family
Artist Life
1716 - 1800
Role
Artist
Accession Number
2015.79.181
Catalogue Raisonne
Murase, Art through a Lifetime, no. 432
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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rooster standing in wide stance, with head down by legs, watching a chick at bottom; hen and two other chicks to the R; flowering pink bush at R extending to top