Hawks by a Stream [left of a pair] by Soga Nichokuan

Hawks by a Stream [left of a pair] c. mid 17th century

ink, color-on-paper

toned paper

light pencil work

pencil sketch

incomplete sketchy

japan

personal sketchbook

ink

color-on-paper

underpainting

watercolour bleed

watercolour illustration

sketchbook art

watercolor

"Hawks by a Stream [left of a pair]" is a six-panel screen painted by Soga Nichokuan, a prominent Japanese artist of the 17th century, depicting a serene and detailed landscape with two hawks. Nichokuan was known for his masterful brushwork, creating a delicate balance between realism and abstraction in his depictions of nature. This screen, now located at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, is a classic example of his style and showcases his talent for capturing the beauty and tranquility of the natural world. The artwork is significant for its skillful portrayal of avian forms and a meticulous depiction of the natural environment, showcasing the Japanese aesthetics of the time.

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minneapolisinstituteofart about 1 year ago

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Birds of prey became a favorite subject of members of Japan’s warrior class beginning in the 1400s and 1500s. When applied to large-scale paintings like folding screens, such images, which express notions such as military prowess, power, and valor, made for a particularly impressive backdrop for warriors’ receptions rooms. Soga Nichokuan, like his father, Soga Chokuan (Nichokuan literally means “the second Chokuan”), specialized in images of birds, especially hawks and other birds of prey, whose textured feathers they described using a meticulous layering of various tones of ink wash. The hawks of Nichokuan and his father owe a great deal to older Chinese and Japanese paintings . But Nichokuan, particularly in late works like this one, placed these more conservative birds into surreal landscapes of knobby, wildly twisting trees, jagged boulders, and sometimes bizarre water features.