KAWANABE, Kyosai (illus.).

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Kyosai gadan ("Kyosai's Treatise on Painting"). Later printing of this study of Japanese painting and its history. The first part (naihen) is made up of Kyosai's explanation of general techniques, with evocative illustrations of mountains, human anatomy, gods, demons, cats, birds, and courtesans. The second part (gaihen) is his biography, edited by his pupil.Kawanabe Kyosai (1831-1889) was "among the most versatile and talented artists of the late nineteenth century" (Jordan, p. 306). At age six he started his art training under Utagawa Kuniyoshi, before progressing to become a member of the Kano school until 1852. He was a devoted adherent to the technique of shasei, drawing from observation of life and nature. Over his career he collaborated with authors such as Kanagaki Robun, took Josiah Conder as his pupil, and advised Ernest Fenellosa. His work was also displayed at the Japanese Art Exhibitions in Paris in 1883 and 1884. In Kyosai gadan he writes that "the Japanese mode of painting is the softness of the force of the pencil" and that sketching from life "is the foundation and the essentials of brush technique are the embellishment" (Jordan, p. 306). He demonstrates this by reproducing his own works and that of artists such as Toyo Sesshu, Hasegawa Settan, and many members of the Kano school. His biography in the second part is one of the primary sources of information about his life.This copy is housed in a modern folding case with the publisher's illustrated paper labe

• Printing: later

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