Depictions of Mt. Fuji 富士 painted from the Heian period to modern times in a variety of contexts. A usually quiet (but still…

Lit. axe-cut stroke. A painting texture stroke, *shunpō 皴法, said to have been…

A pictorial subject taken from the "Wisteria Leaves" (Fuji no uraba, underleaves of wisteria), Chapter 33 of …

A pictorial subject taken from the "Purple Trousers" (Fujibakama, also translated as Mistflowers), Chapter 30 of…

Ch: Puhua. An itinerant priest of the Tang Dynasty depicted in paintings as wandering the streets of Zhenzhou 鎮州 in a state…

Lit. Landscape painting, a general term, usually applied only to works in the long western tradition of landscape by…

Also zōkin bokashi 雑巾ぼかし, rag shading. Any wiping technique used to produce gradated tones (shading) on a woodblock…

A technique to create tints by placing a cut-out pattern on paper and scraping paint through a wire mesh with a brush,…

A compositional technique used to depict a residential interior. The technique involves rendering a building without a roof…

A later-era appellation given to a group of artists from the late Edo period who consciously attempted revive the past *…

A restoration copy. A painting that is copied with the intent of restoring it to near its original state. This means…

Ch: Fuxi. A legendary Chinese sage and ruler who was the founder of Chinese civilization and first sovereign of the Five…

The woodblock-printed paper that formed the outer covers for prints and woodblock books. In the 1770s-80s it became popular…

A type of mounting for hanging scrolls, *kakemono 掛物. The *…

Also read fukurotsuzuri. Also called karatoji 唐綴 and fukurozōshi 袋草子. Lit. pouch-binding. The…

Also fuchoku 布置. Composition in Chinese painting. Included in the fifth canon, "Plan and Design, Place and Position…

1　A Tang Dynasty term for rough sketches or underdrawings made with gesso powder, *…

Lit. refined taste. An aesthetic ideal implying traditional elegance, chic stylishness, creative ingenuity, and sometimes…

Ch: Fengliuzhentu. Lit. Depictions of Elegant Battles. A Chinese painting subject included among the Pictures of…

Lit. satirical pictures. Paintings and prints satirizing current events, world affairs, government, and politics. The…

Biography of Famous Painters in Japan, a comprehensive mid-19th-century biography of painters. Supplemented and…

Primer on Master Painters of Japan, an early 18th-century biography of painters by Asai Fukyū 浅井不旧. Asai, a native…

Ch: Fengshuidong. Lit. the wind and water caves. A grotto complex near Hangzhou 杭州 which was the subject of poems by Su…

Abbreviation of fusumashōji-e 襖障子絵. Paintings on sliding-door panels, *fusuma…

A term used for one of the parts of the mounting of a hanging scroll, *kakemono…

Also shokanbukuro-e 書簡袋絵. The woodblock-printed pictures on folded paper covers which functioned as envelopes, …

Paintings with the daily activities and special pleasures of contemporary life as their subject matter. Equivalent to the…

Ch: Luofuxian. The story and pictorial theme of an immortal on Mt. Luofu 羅浮山 (Jp: Rafusen) and the spirit…

Ch: Lanzan weiyu 懶瓚煨芋. A Zen 禅 (Ch: Chan) painting subject depicting the late 8th century Chinese Zen priest Lanzan…

An abbreviation of the term rakusei kanshiki 落成款識. Lit. "inscription cast into ancient bronze vessels at…

Paintings of scenes in and around Kyoto. Famous sites, festivals and activities within the capital rakuchū 洛中…

Also written 楽書. Graffiti or scribblings. The earliest examples in Japan are the scribblings in the margins or on the backs…

Ch: lanyemiao. Lit. "orchid-leaf drawing." A style of ink-painting using fluid, modulated lines that resemble the…

Ch: Lanting qushui. Lit. "meandering stream and orchid pavilion." A painting theme which refers to a gathering held…

Ch: Ling Zhaonu. Raised by her aged parents as a devout Buddhist, this semi-legendary daughter of Tang dynasty lay Buddhist…

A set of books from which the larger portion is missing; the odd volume or smaller portion (i.e., several pages) of a larger…

Ch: Lingyun Guanhua. The Tang dynasty Zen 禅 priest Lingyun Zhiqin (Jp: Reiun Shikin 霊雲志勤), a disciple of Weishan Lingyu (Jp…

A long piece of paper or board the same length as *zenshi 全紙 (approximately 135…

A piece of paper, three-quarters the size of *zenshi 全紙. When a…

Also renge karakusa 蓮華唐草. Lit. "lotus pattern." A decorative floral and vine design motif that originated in China…

Also *shumon 珠文. A design pattern that uses circles to represent pearls which…

Also tetsuyōsō 綴葉装 or retsuyōsō 列葉装.
A multisection book. A type of Japanese book-binding. The…

Ch: Li Bai (701-62). One of the two most famous poets of the early Tang dynasty along with Du Fu (Jp: *…

Ch: Li Guang sheshi. Lit. "Li Guang shooting a rock." The Han dynasty archer Li Guang (Jp: Ri Kō 李広) who, on a…

Hanging scrolls *kakemono 掛物 in a set of two or more. Each…

The Six Canons or Principles, thought to be essential for the appreciation of Chinese painting. They were set out in the…

Ch: Lin Lingsu. A Daoist immortal in the service of the Northern Song Emperor Huizong (Jp: Kisō 徽宗, r. 1101-25). A staunch…

A technique used to copy *mosha 模写 a painting or work of calligraphy. The…

A school of painters and decorative artists, which began in 17th-century Kyoto and then spread to Kanazawa and Edo. The term…

Ch: Nongyuxian. Lit. "Immortal Rōgyoku 弄玉 (Ch: Nongyu)." According to legend, a court lady of the Spring and Autumn Annals…

Ch: Louge shanshui. A type of painted landscape composed by combining a multi-story tower or viewing pavilion with…

The Six Immortal Poets. A pictorial theme depicting six outstanding poets of the 9th century. Designated by Ki no Tsurayuki…

Also rokumaiori byōbu 六枚折屏風. A folding screen with six panels, measuring approximately 1.5 m high and 3.7 m wide.…

The six distances in Chinese landscape painting. Read riku-en. First mentioned by Han Zhuo (Jp: Kan Setsu 韓拙,…

Also *iwa-rokushō 岩緑青. A green pigment *…

A type of Chinese paper *karakami 唐紙. Decorated paper imported to Japan…

Ch: Lu Dongbin. Also called Lu Yan (Jp: Ryo Gan 呂巌) or Chunyangzi (Jp: Jun'yōshi 純陽子).
A popular Taoist hero,…

Paper used for writing and painting; for documents, classical books, Buddhist sutras etc. Ryōshi used in Japan…

The decoration of paper used for calligraphy and painting *ryōshi 料紙. Paper…

Also written 竜. Ch: long. A dragon.
1　Mythological animal and cosmological symbol of Chinese…

Ch: longhutu. Painting of a dragon *ryū 龍 and tiger …

A design pattern which represents flowing water. One of the oldest designs in Japan, it appears as parallel 'S' lines…