266 - KINOSHITA OJU: KOI AND TURTLES

KINOSHITA OJU: KOI AND TURTLES By Kinoshita Oju (1777-1815), signed Oju with seal Oju Japan, Kyoto, 1800s-1810s, Edo period (1615-1868) Published: Forrer, Matthi [ed.] (2020) Kakemono: Five centuries of Japanese painting. The Perino Collection, p. 100, cat. no. 80. Exhibited: MUSEC Villa Malpensata, Lugano, Kakemono: Five centuries of Japanese painting. The Perino Collection, 17 July 2020-11 April 2021. MAO Museo d'Arte Orientale, Turin, Kakemono: Five centuries of Japanese painting. The Perino Collection, 12 November 2021-25 April 2022. Ink and watercolors on silk. Mounted as a hanging scroll on a brocade silk frame with wood jikusaki (roller ends). Finely painted with three carp swimming through a tranquil pond, while two turtles rest on a rocky bank overlooking the water, the scene rendered in soft washes and subtle tonal gradations. Inscriptions: Signed 應受 Oju with seal 應受 Oju. The tomobako inscribed, 絹地水ニ鯉亀繪、應受筆 Kinuji mizu ni koi kame ga, Oju hitsu [A painting of carp and a tortoise on silk, painted by Oju]. Image SIZE 97.6 x 34.5 cm, SIZE incl. mounting 174.5 x 47 cm With an inscribed wood tomobako (storage box). Provenance: Ex-collection Dr. Claudio Perino, Turin, Italy, acquired mostly in Japan in the early 2000s. Dr. Claudio Perino (b. 1951) is a collector with a keen interest in Japanese, Chinese and Far Eastern cultures. His collection consists of over 2000 works of art, partly loaned to the Museum of Oriental Arts (MAO) in Turin, Italy and to the Museo delle Culture (MUSEC) in Lugano, Switzerland. Condition: Very good condition with minor wear, creasing and folds, and a few minor stains, few small losses and flaking to the pigment. Kinoshita Oju (1777-1815) was born and active in Kyoto and was the second son of the celebrated painter Maruyama Okyo (1733-1795), under whom he studied. Oju continued the naturalistic approach established by his father and was particularly known for paintings of flowers and birds. The quiet naturalism of the present painting is characteristic of the Maruyama tradition, with close observation of the movements and forms of the aquatic animals combined with restrained, atmospheric washes. Carp (koi), admired for their vigor and perseverance, are traditionally associated with advancement and success, while turtles (kame) are longstanding emblems of longevity, lending the tranquil composition an auspicious undertone. Museum comparison: Compare a closely related hanging scroll, Carp swimming in clear water, by the same artist, dated 1777-1815, 43.1 x 57.5 cm, in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, accession number EA1973.144. Compare a related hanging scroll of Turtles by Maruyama Okyo (1733-1795), 106.8 x 46.7 cm, in the Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art, Washington D.C., accession number F1904.398.