Title: Old Plum
Creator: Kano Sansetsu (1590–1651)
Medium / Materials: Four sliding-door panels (“fusuma”), painted with ink, color, gold, and gold leaf on paper
Date: 1964
Period: Edo Period (1615 – 1868)
Culture: Japan
Dimensions: 68 3/4 x 191 1/8 in. (174.6 x 485.5 cm) – All four panels combined
Overall (A): 68 3/8 x 47 5/8 in. (173.7 x 121 cm)
Overall (B): 68 3/8 x 48 3/4 in. (173.7 x 123.8 cm)
Overall (C): 68 1/2 x 47 3/4 in. (174 x 121.3 cm)
Overall (D): 68 1/2 x 47 3/4 in. (174 x 121.3 cm)
Repository: The Metropolitan Museum of Art (New York, NY)
Accession Number: 1975.268.48a–d
Classification: Paintings
Description: Spanning over 15.0 feet in length and 5.5 feet in height, Kano Sansetsu’s four panel fusuma painting, Old Plum showcases the twisting branches of an elder plum tree growing atop a cliff in early spring. Painted with dark ink, the tree’s massive trunk immediately draws the viewer’s attention to the rightward panel and drags their gaze leftward as the tree gradually decreases in bulk across the elegant gold background. Speckled with flowers beginning to blossom with icy white petals, the old tree conveys a unique feeling of everlasting power and wealth coupled with the potential for future growth. A common theme amongst Kano School painters, the natural landscape setting of Old Plum appears to tell a story of seasonal progression from early spring to summer as fully bloomed azaleas can be seen in the leftward panel of the painting leaving spectators to imagine what the now missing adjacent panels may have looked like. Taking a closer look at each respective panel, the far rightward panel (A) depicts not only the tree’s powerful root system, but also an array of pillar-like rocks and dark green vegetation. Moving leftward to the two middle panels (B & C), the plum tree’s structure forms a one-of-a-kind, asymmetric archway that emits a feeling of elegance and prestige to those that use the doorway. As previously mentioned, the final panel (D) reveals the beginnings of a mature azalea bush colored with deep red and green pigments. In addition to this flowery feature, the panel details a flat pathway-like structure that introduces a distinctive feeling of depth to the artwork as the rock travels into the golden background. Overall, Old Plum captures the beautiful craftsmanship of Kano painters who were known for their pursuit of more rational compositional structures and flowery landscapes.
References :
https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/44858
https://www.thelivingobject.com/home/old-plum
https://www.metmuseum.org/blogs/now-at-the-met/2015/the-old-plum
https://books.google.com/books?id=xCF8XJcP6oQC&printsec=frontcover&hl=en#v=onepage&q&f=false
