Rinpa 琳派

A school of painters and decorative artists, which began in 17th-century Kyoto and then spread to Kanazawa and Edo. The term "Rinpa" became popular during the Meiji period, when the word rin 琳 was borrowed from Ogata Kōrin 尾形光琳 (1658-1716), with the implied meaning of the Kōrin school Kōrin-ha 光琳派. Other late 19th century terms for the same school include the Kōetsu-ha 光悦派 (still used today), and the Kōetsu-Kōrin-ha 光悦光琳派. Recently the term Sōtatsu-Kōrin-ha 宗達光琳派 has come into use, reflecting a reevaluation of the creative importance of Sōtatsu.
Rinpa artists connected to one another by family and patronage, and though they worked on various formats, notably screens, fans and hanging scrolls, woodblock printed books, lacquerware, ceramics, and kimono 着物 textiles, each group seemed to truly admire the others' work. The Rinpa artists recalled the *yamato-e やまと絵 traditions of the Heian period, both in subject matter and style. In addition, elements from Muromachi period ink painting, Ming dynasty flower-and-grasses paintings, as well as the Kano school *Kano-ha 狩野派 and other artistic developments of the Momoyama period also became a part of the style. The emphasis on design elements and technique became more pronounced as the years progressed, with increased refinement and polish being one of the characteristics of later Rinpa. Techniques which were Rinpa hallmarks like dripping *tarashikomi 溜込, for example, were adopted by other schools such as the *Maruyama-Shijō-ha 円山四条派. The influence of Rinpa was strong throughout the early modern period and after, and even today Rinpa style paintings and designs are popular.
Patronage came at first from the affluent merchant town elite and the old Kyoto aristocratic families, who favoured courtly culture and art which followed classical tradition. With the growing power and prestige of Edo, patronage spread to the shogunate and other members of the upper class.
The school beganin Kyoto with Hon'ami Kōetsu 本阿弥光悦 (1558-1637), who in 1615 founded the artistic community of craftsmen with their families supported by wealthy merchant patrons of the *Nichiren 日蓮 sect at Takagamine 鷹ケ峰 in northeastern Kyoto. There many collaborative works especially in ceramics, calligraphy and lacquerware were produced. One of Kōetsu's major collaborators was Sōtatsu 宗達 (? - 1640?), who maintained a Kyoto atelier *eya 絵屋, called the *Tawaraya 俵屋 and produced a broad range of commercial painting such as decorative fans and screening. One of their most important collaborations was between Sōtatsu (or his workshop as most designs are unsigned,) who decorated paper *ryōshi 料紙 especially with underpainting in gold/silver, and Kōetsu who added calligraphy, for example the Shika-zu 鹿図 (Deer Scroll, Seattle Museum in USA). The underpainting uses the *mokkotsu 没骨 technique, and its effects to presage the dripped technique of tarashikomi a characteristic of Rinpa. Among the best well-known independent paintings credited to Sōtatsu are the screens Fūjin Raijin-zu 風神雷神図 (Wind and Thunder Gods, Kenninji 建仁寺 in Kyoto, unsigned), and Matsushima-zu 松島図 (Freer Gallery in USA). Sōtatsu extensively used techniques, motifs and themes from the yamato-e tradition, building on the classical past based on Heian courtly taste. Other 17th-century artists around Kōetsu were Hon'ami Kōsa 本阿弥光瑳 (1578?-1637) and Kōho 光甫 (1601-82). Tawaraya Sōsetsu 俵屋宗雪 (active mid-17th century), who moved from Kyoto to Kanazawa carried on Sōtatsu's idiom. At this new workshop, Sōsetsu, followed by Kitagawa Sōsetsu 喜多川相説 (active mid-17th century) and others produced many screens, most notably of flowers and grasses, until the 19th century.
During the Genroku 元禄 era (1688-1743) the Rinpa tradition was continued by Ogata Kōrin and his younger brother Ogata Kenzan 尾形乾山 (1663-1743). These two well-educated artists were the sons of a rich textile merchant in Kyoto. Kōrin studied Kano painting and then the work of Sōtatsu. A masterpiece by Kōrin is the screens of the Kōhakubai-zu 紅白梅図 (Red and White Plum (Prunus) Trees, ca. 1714/5, Museumof Art MOA in Shizuoka Prefecture). The decorative tour-de-force with a dramatic composition, using tarashikomi and the manner established the direction of the Rinpa for the remainder of its history. Kōrin collaborated with Kenzan in painting designs and calligraphy on his brother's pottery. Kenzan remained as a potter in Kyoto until after Kōrin's death in 1716 when he began to paint professionally. He often based paintings on poems, such as a hanging scroll Hanakago-zu 花篭図 (Baskets of Flowers and Grasses), Fukuoka 福岡 Municipal Museum. Other Rinpa artists active in the 18th century were Tatebayashi Kagei 立林何げい (act. mid-18th century), Tawaraya Sōri 俵屋宗理 (act. late 18th century) of Edo, Watanabe Shikō 渡辺始興 (1683-1755), Fukae Roshū 深江蘆舟(1699-1757) of Kyoto and Nakamura Hōchū 中村方仲 (act. late 18th-early 19th century) of Osaka.
The Rinpa tradition was carried on into the 19th century by Sakai Hōitsu 酒井抱一 (1761-1828) of Edo. He studied Kano painting and Nanpin style (see *Nanpin-ha 南蘋派) and then developed an interest in Kōrin as he had access to works in his family collection, and published books about the master's art. An excellent example of the urbanity and style (echoing past masters) found in Hōitsu's painting is the Natsu akikusa-zu 夏秋草図 (Summer and Autumn Grasses) executed on the back of Kōrin's screen Fūjin Raijin-zu 風神雷神図 (Wind and Thunder Gods) at Tokyo National Museum. Hōitsu's gifted student, Suzuki Kiitsu 鈴木其一 (1796-1858) was adopted into the Sakai family through marriage and served as Hōitsu's assistant until his master's death. The screens of Kashū keiryū-zu 夏秋渓流図 (Rapids in Summer and Autumn) at the Nezu 根津 Museum in Tokyo is a well-known example of his work that shows a more refined and delicate adaption of Hōitsu's style .