The Tale of Genji
This pair of screens captures a dozen episodes from The Tale of Genji, written in the early eleventh century by Murasaki Shikibu, a lady-in-waiting and poet at the imperial palace. As pointed out elsewhere in this gallery, Genji details the life, loves, and political intrigue of the radiant Genji, a nobleman at the Heian court. Each panel here illustrates a famous scene from the story.
Although Genji was a frequent subject for Tosa school painters, a close examination of the facial expressions and attire in this example reveals something radically different, pleasantly unorthodox, and vibrantly colorful. These paintings embrace a style associated with Iwasa Matabei (1578–1650), renowned for his depictions of classical literature, and were created within a generation or two of his death.
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