Studio: international art (49.1910)

Contemporary Japanese Painting

young, is at present a prominent member of his
cult. His Snowy Landscape gives evidences of
laudable efforts to represent in a lucid manner the
forms of natural objects, and to avoid falling into
ambiguity through want of vigour in his strokes.
Moreover, in his present creation he has bestowed
much well-deserved care on the gradation of ink
tones. The composition, being of the Chinese
type, cannot be said to be realistic, and yet for a
work of its kind it is somewhat inclined to
naturalism. The picture, creditably representing
as it does a style hallowed by long tradition, is to
be placed far above many of the same school in
which vigour of touch is lacking.

Besides the works already reviewed, the last
exhibition contained many others worthy of con-
sideration, for example the exhibits of Mr. Gyokudo
Kawai and Okoku Kishima. The New-School
paintings outnumbered those of the Old School.

104

Two or three older members of the classic schools
displayed pieces which did not, however, strike one
as being very remarkable. Victory seems to be
falling into the hands of the men that are striving
to develop a style close to nature, without any too
strict adherence to the classic methods. This is
indeed the natural outcome of the new require-
ments of the age. But it must be remembered
that art is not to be governed by the same laws as
those which govern practical affairs, and cannot
therefore always be in accord with social demands.
In other words, in matters of art, both old and
new styles may well be encouraged and promoted
with impunity. For our own part, we do not wish
to see our time-honoured styles become extinct;
on the contrary we deeply deplore the ever-increas-
ing decline of the glorious art reared by Mitsunaga
or Sesshu. It is worth remarking that the recent
progress of New-School native painting has been