Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is an ink painting. It dates from 1834 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
The untitled ink painting from the Hokusai School depicts a genre scene populated by four principal elements: a man, a woman, oxen, and a bird.
The untitled ink painting from the Hokusai School depicts a genre scene populated by four principal elements: a man, a woman, oxen, and a bird. The combination of human figures with working oxen situates the work within the everyday rural life of nineteenth-century Japan, a recurring concern of Hokusai and his followers. The presence of the bird alongside the human and animal pair suggests a harmonious pastoral setting, while the inclusion of both a male and female figure implies a domestic or laboring relationship tied to the oxen.
As a genre scene rendered in ink on paper, the painting emphasizes ordinary subjects rather than mythological or religious iconography, reflecting the Hokusai School's interest in documenting common life.
Technique & Style
Created in 1834 by an artist of the Hokusai School, this work is an unmounted painting executed in ink on paper. The piece measures 27.9 cm in height and 38.1 cm in width. As a genre scene produced in Japan, the composition depicts a narrative grouping that includes a man, a woman, oxen, and a bird.
The classification as an unmounted painting suggests a specific handling tradition distinct from framed or scroll-mounted formats, utilizing the absorbent qualities of paper to render the inked figures.
History & Provenance
This unmounted ink-on-paper painting from 1834, produced by the Hokusai School in Japan, is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The work measures 27.9 by 38.1 centimeters. No specific inventory or accession number is recorded in the available documentation, and no exhibition history is documented in the provided sources.
Overview
This unmounted ink painting on paper, titled Untitled, was created in 1834 by an artist associated with the Hokusai School. It presents a genre scene, capturing a moment of daily life in Japan. The composition features human figures, an ox, and birds, rendered with a fluid approach characteristic of the period's ink painting traditions.
Context
As the painting remains unsigned, its precise authorship within the Hokusai School cannot be definitively determined. While it originates from the circle of the renowned artist Hokusai, it is unclear whether the work was executed by Hokusai himself or by one of his many students. This lack of a signature is not uncommon for works produced within artistic workshops of the era.
Artist & collection
- Sketches
Album of Daoist and Buddhist Themes: Procession of Daoist Deities: Leaf 15
Album of Daoist and Buddhist Themes: Procession of Daoist Deities: Leaf 18
Chinese figures and cattle
The Monster of Good and Evil and Others
Album of Daoist and Buddhist Themes: Search the Mountain: Leaf 48
Album of Daoist and Buddhist Themes: Procession of Daoist Deities: Leaf 6
Album of Daoist and Buddhist Themes: Procession of Daoist Deities: Leaf 23
Album of Daoist and Buddhist Themes: Procession of Daoist Deities: Leaf 13
Album of Daoist and Buddhist Themes: Search the Mountain: Leaf 45
Album of Daoist and Buddhist Themes: Search the Mountain: Leaf 44
Untitled
