Gazing at a Waterfall
early 1500s
Medium
Album leaf mounted as a hanging scroll; ink and slight color on paper
Dimensions
painting: 29 × 30.1 cm · mounted with knobs: 113 × 47.6 cm
Classification
Painting
Department
Japanese Art
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
Accession Number
1977.30
Tags
About this artwork
Chinese poet Li Bai’s (701–762) poem “Gazing at a Waterfall on Mount Lu” is about experiencing the vastness of the galaxy in relationship to one’s own being. Japanese Zen monk-poet Keijo Shūrin (1440–1518) identified Li’s poem as the inspiration for Japanese painter Geiami’s (1431–1485) work Gazing at a Waterfall, in the collection of the Nezu Museum, which features sharp brushstrokes and bright colors. In contrast, this album leaf’s painter, Geiami’s son Sōami, took a more delicate approach to ...