Description:
Koryusai Isoda active mid 1760-1780
Isoda Koryusai worked during an extraordinary and crucial period in the evolution of the print tradition. His career bridged the gap between those of Suzuki Harunobu (1724-1770) and Torii Kiyonaga (1752-1852): two artists whose works were lauded as the Japanese print tradition's finest. Koryusai was thus overshadowed by his illustrious predecessor and successor. However, by any measure, he may well have been the most prolific artist of the 18th century, producing over two thousand five hundred designs ranging various subjects.
His most famous series is 'Hinagata Wakana no Hatsu Moyo' (A
Koryusai Isoda active mid 1760-1780
Isoda Koryusai worked during an extraordinary and crucial period in the evolution of the print tradition. His career bridged the gap between those of Suzuki Harunobu (1724-1770) and Torii Kiyonaga (1752-1852): two artists whose works were lauded as the Japanese print tradition's finest. Koryusai was thus overshadowed by his illustrious predecessor and successor. However, by any measure, he may well have been the most prolific artist of the 18th century, producing over two thousand five hundred designs ranging various subjects.
His most famous series is 'Hinagata Wakana no Hatsu Moyo' (A Pattern Book: First Designs for Young Herbs). It was the first series with publication extending over a number of years. Its success also broadened appeal of the Oban format. Taking the Yoshiwara (pleasure district) as its primary framing device, it set the direction for bijinga (prints of beautiful women) production well into the 19th century, reinforcing his position as one of the premier designers of bijinga. His high productivity is a testament to the popularity and recognition for his talents that he enjoyed within his own lifetime.
Little is known of the life of Koryusai. The 'Ukiyo-e Ruiko' (Various Thoughts on Ukiyo-e), a compilation of Ukiyo-e artists' biographies notes that Koryusai was born in 1735. He began his career as a printmaker under the name Haruhito in 1769 at the age of 35 while he was still a samurai under the service of the Tsuchiya clan. It is reasonable to assume that as a student, Koryusai had a professional relationship with Harunobu and held him in high esteem despite the fact that a samurai in the Tokugawa socio-political structure could never officially be a protagonist to an artisan.
After the death of Harunobu, he took the role of an Ukiyo-e artist more seriously, rather than merely an artistic outlet for his creative inclinations. This was due to the urging and inducement of publishers anxiously seeking a replacement for Harunobu. The designs of Koryusai therefore, sometimes exhibit a dependence on his mentor and some have accused him of plagiarism. However, iconographic limitations on certain themes imposed on Koryusai and his peers account for what might seem as plagiarism. The popularity of a design led consumers to expect more of the same. No commercial artist, including Koryusai, could fail to meet those expectations.
In 1778, midway through the career of Koryusai, the Tsuchiya clan was under considerable financial strain. At this point, Koryusai changed his name to Buko Yagenbori Inshi (The Hermit of Buko Yagenbori), to demarcate the beginning of his life as a ronin (masterless samurai). As a ronin, his outlook changed dramatically, while he produced Ukiyo-e for a short time, he also sought artistic legitimacy of a more traditional sort. The result was an expansion of his interests to include painting, book illustration and kachoga (flower and bird prints) which all conveyed a sense of artistic legitimacy and would set him apart from the other Ukiyo-e artists. Koryusai exhibited particular skill with hashira-e (pillar prints). By meeting the compositional challenges fully, critics have noted the excellence and originality of his hashira-e and have thus distinguished him from others.
In his search for artistic legitimacy, the prints of Koryusai during this time also used calligraphic line and ink tonalities that were closely related to brush painting. He also produced printed copies of Kano masters and other noted painters. Koryusai even changed his signature to Yamato, evoking the classical culture of the Heian period (794-1185) to remake his public persona and achieve artistic legitimacy.
Koryusai played a major role in the early development of serialised prints which are a unique feature of the Japanese print tradition. His production of print series easily overshadows that of his predecessors and peers, setting a number of precedents that significantly affected the work of later artists. Despite his relative obscurity, Koryusai popularised serialised prints in ways that secured for them a niche among the print traditions' many products.
In 1782, at the age of 48, Koryusai received the priestly rank of Hokkyo (bridge of the law), an honour the imperial court occasionally granted to distinguished artists. After this achievement, he scaled back his production of commercial art. His last print was issued in 1790 at the age of 55.
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