Chinese Sage Evoking a Dragon
ca. 1825
Medium
Woodblock print (surimono); ink and color on paper
Dimensions
8 x 6 15/16 in. (20.3 x 17.6 cm)
Classification
Prints
Culture & Period
Japan · Edo period (1615–1868)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1919
Accession Number
JP1107
Tags
Art Historical Context
In the vibrant world of Edo-period Japan (1615–8), Yashima Gakutei (active 1810s–1840s), a master of ukiyo-e woodblock prints, created *Chinese Sage Evoking a* around 1825. intimate surimono—a luxurious, privately commissioned print often produced for special occasions like New Year's—measures just 8 x 6 15/16 inches, making it a treasured personal artwork rather than mass-produced fare. Rendered in delicate ink and color on paper, it captures a mythical moment where a wise Chinese sage summons a powerful dragon, blending Confucian sagehood with East Asian folklore where dragons embody imperia...
About the Artist
Yashima Gakutei · 1786–1868
Yashima Gakutei (c. 1786–1868), born in Osaka as the illegitimate son of a Tokugawa shogunate samurai named Hirata, adopted the name from his mother's subsequent marriage into the Yashima clan. Little is documented about his early years beyond these familial ties, but he pursued artistic training under the esteemed ukiyo-e masters Totoya Hokkei and Katsushika Hokusai, absorbing their precision in ...