Artwork
"Akashi", "Channel Buoys" ("Miotsukushi"), "The Wormwood Patch" ("Yomogiu"), "Gatehouse" ("Sekiya"), and "Picture Contest" ("E-awase") chapters from the Tale of Genji (Genji monogatari)
"Akashi", "Channel Buoys" ("Miotsukushi"), "The Wormwood Patch" ("Yomogiu"), "Gatehouse" ("Sekiya"), and "Picture Contest" ("E-awase") chapters from the Tale of Genji (Genji monogatari) is an unspecified painting. It dates from 1492 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The work is a multi‑panel ink drawing that visualizes five episodes from the classic Japanese novel The Tale of Genja.
About this work
Context
The work is currently held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it serves as a key example of narrative illustration from the Muromachi period.
Created in 1492, this set of five handscroll illustrations depicting chapters from the Tale of Genji represents a significant anonymous contribution to Japanese painting of the late fifteenth century. The work is currently held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it serves as a key example of narrative illustration from the Muromachi period. Although the specific artist remains unidentified, the scrolls' survival and institutional preservation highlight their enduring importance in the canon of Japanese art history.
The depiction of specific scenes such as "Akashi" and "Picture Contest" demonstrates the continued cultural resonance of Murasaki Shikibu's literary masterpiece long after its original composition.
Legacy
The depicted chapters left a lasting imprint on Japanese visual culture, shaping later compositions inspired by the Tale of Genji and sustaining a visual vocabulary drawn from the narrative traditions of Heian court literature. The work is housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it remains a significant example of the museum's Japanese painting collection.
Overview
The work is a multi‑panel ink drawing that visualizes five episodes from the classic Japanese novel The Tale of Genja. Rendered in stark black lines on a light ground, the composition presents interior scenes arranged side by side, each depicting a distinct narrative moment.
Subject & Meaning
The panels portray: a woman seated beside a latticed window while a man stands nearby (Akashi); a solitary figure reclining on a cushion amid modest furnishings (Channel Buoys); a musician playing a stringed instrument (The Wormwood Patch); a woman holding a fan or scroll (Gatehouse); and a scene of a picture‑making contest (Picture Contest). Together they illustrate courtly activities and emotional exchanges central to the novel’s plot.
Technique & Style
Executed with brush‑drawn black ink, the images rely on bold outlines and flat areas of colour, typical of Japanese narrative scrolls. The lack of shading and the crisp linear quality create a graphic, almost storyboard‑like effect, emphasizing the sequential storytelling rather than realistic depth.
History & Provenance
The series belongs to the tradition of Genji illustrated manuscripts that flourished in the Edo period, when aristocratic literature was frequently adapted for visual consumption. The piece is now held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, which acquired it as part of its collection of Japanese narrative paintings.
Artist & collection
