A FINE KANO SCHOOL TWO-PANEL ‘WHITE HERONS AND LATE SNOW’ BYOBU (FOLDING SCREEN)

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A FINE KANO SCHOOL TWO-PANEL ‘WHITE HERONS AND LATE SNOW’ BYOBU (FOLDING SCREEN) Japan, 18th-19th century, Edo period (1615-1868) Ink, watercolors, and gold leaf on paper. Mounted on silk brocade on two lacquered wood panels with metal fittings. Finely painted with a willow lightly dusted with snow, surrounded by blooming camellias, heralding the advent of spring, alongside other seasonal flora, beside a small pond in whose tranquil waters two gracefully standing white herons are wading. SIZE 175.8 x 191.6 cm The Kano school was a prominent group of painters, comprising both relatives of the Kano family and talented students who were granted the family name. The school played a central role in the production of paintings for temples and palaces in Japan's capital cities throughout the Edo period. Renowned for their deep understanding of Chinese painting styles, the Kano artists adapted these techniques to meet Japanese tastes. Early works from the Kano school drew heavy inspiration from Chinese landscape painters of the Song dynasty. Over time, the school’s style evolved, blending the finely modulated ink outlines of Chinese traditions with the richly decorative colors and seasonal motifs of the indigenous Yamato-e school. The screen’s carefully arranged composition, with the willow tree bending toward the center, reflects the influence of celebrated works produced in Kyoto by the artists Tan’yu and Sansetsu during the early 17th century. Literature comparison: Compare a closely related two-panel byobu (folding screen) depicting a willow softly dusted with snow, camellias in bloom, and herons poised on a calm pond, dated Edo period, 167.8 x 190.2 cm, in the Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art, accession number F1902.20. Auction comparison: Compare a closely related Kano school screen with a single white heron below a snow-dusted willow, dated 19th century, 170.5 x 184.9 cm, at Bonhams, Fine Asian Works of Art, 7 June 2005, San Francisco, lot 2289 (sold for USD 9,988 or approx. EUR 14,500 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing).

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