c. 1550

Pavilions in a Mountain Landscape

Now mounted as hanging scrolls, this pair of ink paintings was originally set into lacquered wood frames to serve as sliding doors in an upper-class residence or Buddhist temple of the sixteenth century. The unidentified artist was thoroughly trained in Chinese-style ink painting techniques. The theme of the retired scholar-recluse in his mountain retreat is dramatically expressed in this landscape, which reads from right to left. Beneath the sharp contours of the mountains a steep waterfall feeds a river below. The precarious bridge over the water leads to a Chinese-style pavilion among the cliffs, where a group of scholars sip tea or wine under the moonlight.