Who painted 青木木米筆山中喫茶図扇面|Preparing Tea by a Mountain Gorge?

青木木米筆山中喫茶図扇面|Preparing Tea by a Mountain Gorge was painted by Aoki Mokubei in 1825.

Where can I see 青木木米筆山中喫茶図扇面|Preparing Tea by a Mountain Gorge?

青木木米筆山中喫茶図扇面|Preparing Tea by a Mountain Gorge is held by Metropolitan Museum of Art.

What movement is 青木木米筆山中喫茶図扇面|Preparing Tea by a Mountain Gorge?

青木木米筆山中喫茶図扇面|Preparing Tea by a Mountain Gorge is associated with Baroque.

Artwork

青木木米筆山中喫茶図扇面|Preparing Tea by a Mountain Gorge

Aoki Mokubei , 1825

青木木米筆山中喫茶図扇面|Preparing Tea by a Mountain Gorge is an ink painting by the Baroque artist Aoki Mokubei. It dates from 1825 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

About this work

Subject & Meaning

The fan depicts a scene of tea preparation set within a steep mountain gorge, a subject that merges everyday ritual with the natural world.

The fan depicts a scene of tea preparation set within a steep mountain gorge, a subject that merges everyday ritual with the natural world. A lone figure bends over a low table, pouring hot water into a teacup while a steep cliff and misty foliage frame the composition. The imagery evokes the Daoist ideal of harmony between human activity and secluded mountain retreats, emphasizing contemplation, humility, and the transient pleasure of a shared drink.

By rendering the act on a portable fan intended as a hanging scroll, the work blurs the boundaries between utilitarian object and artistic expression, reflecting the late‑Edo fascination with refined leisure and scholarly pastimes.

Technique & Style

Preparing Tea by a Mountain Gorge is executed in ink and color on paper, a combination characteristic of Japanese literati-influenced painting of the late Edo period. The work takes the form of a folding fan remounted as a hanging scroll, a common Japanese adaptation that allows a compact fan composition to be displayed vertically on a wall. Classified as a landscape painting, the piece uses monochrome ink alongside applied color to render a mountain-gorge tea setting, with the fan's arc-shaped field shaping the spatial handling of the scene.

No specific condition report, dimensions, or detailed stylistic analysis is documented in the available sources.

Legacy

Aoki Mokubei created Preparing Tea by a Mountain Gorge in 1799, executing the image on paper with ink and color before mounting it as a hanging scroll from a folding fan.

The piece belongs to the landscape genre and is housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where its presence in a prominent collection has contributed to ongoing scholarly discussion of late‑Edo fan paintings.

Its dating of 1799 aligns with the artist’s active years, and the work’s classification as a painting rather than a utilitarian fan underscores its artistic ambition.

Together these attributes have positioned the fan‑scroll as an illustrative example of how functional objects were elevated to fine‑art status in early modern Japan.

Overview

Aoki Mokubei created Preparing Tea by a Mountain Gorge in 1825. This artwork, rendered with ink and color on paper, was originally conceived as a folding fan before being mounted as a hanging scroll. It presents a serene landscape, a common theme in the artist's oeuvre, inviting contemplation of nature.