Sesshū: A Japanese Ink Master
SESSHŪ TŌYŌ lived from 1420 to 1506, and is considered to be among the greatest Japanese landscape painters of all time.
Although he is certainly not the only Japanese artist to have done so, Master Sesshū is famous for having worked with a highly limited selection of materials. He painted many of his most beloved scrolls using only one cake of ink: black.
Sesshū probably chose to paint with just one color, but we still describe this constraint as EXTERNAL because it does not dictate the precise outcome of his artwork. (A direct constraint might appear if, for example, a noblewoman commanded Sesshū to paint her portrait and described in detail the expression that she wished her likeness to display.)
A second important aspect of Sesshū’s artistry is its craftsmanship. He is but one in a long line of masters and apprentices, many of whom are still remembered today for their skillful command of ink and brush. As we explore his work, you will notice that Sesshū painted lines of varying thickness, and mixed his black ink with water to create many shades of grey.
The National Museum, Tokyo, Japan.
HERE, YOU WILL DISCOVER just two of Master Sesshū’s many beautiful landscapes. Both are from the collection of the National Museum in Tokyo. If you are reading this article online, click on each image for a larger view.
The landscapes can easily speak for themselves, allowing you to see firsthand the work of a classical master. But in case you are wondering where to begin, I have found an expert who is ready to help.
In the first scene, above, the viewer can “follow the measured steps of the travelers,” explains Joan Stanley-Baker in Japanese Art. “They wend their way from the stone path, lower left, around the foreground boulder, past pavilions tucked beneath the road, to the rocky promontory and pavilion on the left where they will gaze past the jutting peaks on the lake.”
The National Museum, Tokyo, Japan.
THE SECOND SCENE REVEALS another mountainous landscape, now in winter. Notice another small traveler who climbs the worn stairs in the foreground.
At this point, some readers might be thinking that both scenes look rather haphazard—that the view would be improved if some of those scraggly trees weren’t in the way. But as Paul Varley argues in Japanese Culture, the poets and painters of Japan “have most characteristically depicted nature…in particularistic glimpses.” In other words, he explains, a Chinese artist working in the same era
may have admired a mountain…for its enduring, fixed quality, but the typical Japanese artist (of the fifteenth century or any other age) has been more interested in a mountain for its changing aspects: for example, how it looks when covered with snow or when partly obscured by mists or clouds.
Without needing to fuss over which color inks to employ, Sesshū freed his mind to observe every detail of the ever-changing world around him.
Does this mean that any painter who uses more than one color is a maximalist and will produce bad art? Of course not—there are many other external constraints within which those artists may thrive. Rather, the sublime illustrations of Master Sesshū are reminders that a true external constraint has the power not to muffle an artist’s creative ability, but to sharpen it.
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While we’re on the subject of black-and-white art, I am also reminded of the terrific movies that appeared in the age before technicolor—Casablanca, It’s a Wonderful Life, Citizen Kane, and so many great Westerns. Hats off to them!
Does anyone remember the transition to color television? I’d be interested to know how audiences reacted.
Hmm! I just did some Googling to see if I could answer this question. The first color film, from 1908, was an 8-minute long production called “A Visit To The Seaside.” The first full-length movie in color was in 1914, called “The World, The Flesh And The Devil.”
Google News has some archived news stories, but they don’t go back that far. Had I a library on hand, I’d dive into the microfilm to find reviews/reactions/reception. I can’t imagine it would have been anything other than positive, from a tech perspective!
On a personal note, I love and sometimes prefer b&w photography over color, for the reasons you mentioned above.
Before I comment on the transition from black and white to color television I would like to point out the huge impact the first television pictures had on the world. This was of course done in black and white. At that time color wasn’t the primary concern. Just having a picture of something happening as you viewed it was just short of remarkable and to have this appear in your living room was astounding. It was so overwhelming that what color it was was a non entity.
I observed an entire Maine fishing village change their life style upon the advent of this new media sensation. To be sure, it wasn’t the color that captured their interest, it was television itself. Where before , this village of lobsterman would go to bed at dark and rise at 4:00 a.m. to tend their traps. Now, with the advent of TV, everyone stayed up later and headed to work much later. What color they watched on this new media didn’t matter.
We also were used to seeing the old black and white movies change to technicolor. This was really something and made the world we viewed so much more interesting. The movie industry soon took advantage of this and began showing us colorful travelogues, Broadway plays and fall, spring vistas and the great paintings in art museums. What I’m trying to convey is that they were taking advantage of the wonderful world of color. One that can show you how beautiful a painting is or the depth of a European village on and on.
So, now television went through a similar phase from the exciting introduction of black and white to color. At first I remember making that transition was a little unreachable. Too expensive, I’m happy with what I’ve got. Then, as more of the sets became available and you could see the effect of this color dimension (just like the impact of technicolor) it became a family challenge to own one. The rest is history. Of course color portrayed things so much more realistically, gave texture to paintings and scenes ( sounds like the era of the movies doesn’t it?).
To me the most impressive transition is yet to come. Look at the detail and beautiful color renditions that High Definition TV is giving us. What will the future of 3D have instore for us.
Excellent thoughts! I was especially interested to read your observations about how producers actively took advantage of color imagery. Maybe that also contributed to the transition for families, because scenes that were specifically filmed in color didn’t look as good on the old TV sets as scenes that had been filmed to compensate for black and white?
I’ve been thinking about the idea of 3D television myself, and I can only imagine that this technology is going to bring us closer and closer to how we experience the real world, with realistic 3D images and maybe even smells or other sensations someday. And with things like the Wii video game system, we could even move around alongside the characters while we watch!
Lovely paintings. This article reminds me of another Japanese art with constraints: haiku.
at the ancient pond
a frog plunges into
the sound of water
~~translated from Bashō (1644-1694)
I can’t remember the change, but I think the moon landing was one of the first events shown in color.
TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD is a beautiful black and white film. It’s interesting how contemporary directors sometimes set the mood by choosing to use black and white even though color is more expected now; such as in SCHINDLER’S LIST or YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN (depending on whether you think the 70’s is contemporary of course…:)
Interesting discussion! BTW I love the music in your latest NatGeoConcert.
It was interesting to learn about Sesshu Toyo. I have always enjoyed artwork created with ink. He is using one ink cake and one color, but is mastering his craft by using many different kinds of ink strokes and mastering many levels of shading to create depth and meaning to the painting. I particularly enjoyed the first painting with the two travelers going up the path where the mountains loomed over them. I noticed that on the right side of the painting, there appears to be a large face looking down on them. The Asian culture’s belief is that the spirits live in the mountains. I am wondering if Master Sesshu has a spirit form watching over the travelers and if they can see the spirit of the mountain too. This reminds me of “The Old Man In The Mountain” that used to be a part of a rock ledge on Cannon Mountain in Lincoln, New Hampshire. It appeared to be a large face of a man, that had been formed naturally over the years, from the ice glaciers. It was a national treasure and attracted many people from all over the world to come view. It unfortunately met its untimely demise in the year 2003 from a rock slide. To the Native Americans this granite face was a great spirit to worship. The Asian people who lived in urban cities far away from the mountains, they would place high towers of rocks around their gardens and smaller towers of rocks in their homes to create mountains, so they could meditate and worship the spirits. They believed the spirits lived in these mountains of rocks that they created, and could feel their presence close to them. This painting looks like the mountains are actually mostly ledge and not land. I am wondering if that is why the artist has created this face out of the large boulder.
In the second painting, I had trouble with the artist’s intent at first glance. I felt on the left side of the painting towards the top, that the painting had been left uncompleted. I know it had not and I am assuming that the mountains were lost in snow drifts to the artist’s eye, so he painted it as he saw them.
As Derek notes in his article, “But as Paul Varley argues in Japanese culture, the poets and painters of Japan ‘have most characteristically depicted nature…in particularistic glimpses.’” One can interpret this painting, as the traveler continues his climb, it becomes more and more unclear where his final destination is going to be. Both paintings are of travelers climbing rocky paths with pavillions nestled along the countryside to offer temporary comfort for the travelers. The terrain seems tricky and not always that steady, and their final destination seems unclear. To me the artist is portraying travelers on a spiritual journey. The climb will not always be easy, but you will feel safe and have comfort along the way. It is a journey where the travelers’ inner work will be done. Both of these paintings are beautiful and graceful.
I am a lover of black and white photography, as sometimes I think that many colors can distract from the actual subjects of the painting, especially in portrait paintings. I do love color in landscapes as it truly depicts the beautiful colors of nature. Both black and white and color have their place in the world of art. I admired both forms of work.
This was a remarkable article with excellent comments made by all. Very worthwhile reading.
Multitasking, I rushed through and didn’t even notice or consider the ‘Old Man in the Mountain’ comparison. Interesting, well-researched comment!
Bette, your observation about the relationship between outer journey and inner journey in the artwork is very insightful. I don’t think I mentioned it in the article, but Master Sesshu was in fact a Buddhist monk. Thanks for commenting!