256 - MARUYAMA-SHIJO SCHOOL: A FINE AND LARGE SIX-PANEL 'MISTY MOUNT FUJI AND PINES' BYOBU (FOLDING SCREEN)

MARUYAMA-SHIJO SCHOOL: A FINE AND LARGE SIX-PANEL 'MISTY MOUNT FUJI AND PINES' BYOBU (FOLDING SCREEN) Japan, early 20th century, Meiji (1868-1912) to Taisho period (1912-1926) Ink and gouache on paper. Mounted on silk brocade over six black-lacquered wood panels with gilt-metal fittings. Finely painted with the monumental snow-capped cone of Mount Fuji rising majestically above drifting veils of mist, its broad slopes delicately modeled in pale washes and white pigment. Below, successive ranges of pine-covered mountains emerge from and dissolve into the vapor, their softly modulated tones progressing from pale grey to deep ink and creating a remarkable sense of atmospheric recession. The broad expanse of mist dominating the lower half of the composition heightens the impression of scale and distance, while the restrained palette and subtle handling of ink lend the landscape a quiet, poetic quality characteristic of the Maruyama-Shijo tradition. The reverse decorated with scattered clouds. Inscriptions: To the lower right, bearing a two-character signature tentatively read Fujitani 藤谷 and a red seal read ko in 孝印. SIZE 173.5 x 367 cm Condition: Very good condition with minor wear. The reverse with typical traces of wear and use, including small losses and a few scratches and tears. The atmospheric treatment of the landscape is strongly indebted to the Maruyama-Shijo tradition, particularly in the use of graded ink washes and the dissolution of solid forms into mist. Rather than defining Mount Fuji through hard contours, the artist allows the mountain and surrounding ridges to emerge gradually from a moisture-laden atmosphere, producing an imposing yet remarkably tranquil vision of the sacred peak. Auction comparison: Compare a related pair of six-panel screens depicting Mount Fuji, Seikenji, and Miho no Matsubara by Maruyama Okyo (1733-1795), 153.5 x 372.2 cm each, at Christie’s, Asobi: Ingenious Creativity - Japanese Works of Art from Antiquity to Contemporary, 15 October 2014, London, lot 60 (sold for GBP 62,500 or approx. EUR 105,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing).