Artwork
寒山拾得図 (Kanzan Jittoku zu)|Hanshan and Shide
寒山拾得図 (Kanzan Jittoku zu)|Hanshan and Shide is an ink painting by the Nihonga artist Kenkō Shōkei. It dates from 1500 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Technique & Style
The artwork is executed as a hanging scroll using ink on paper, a traditional medium for religious subjects in Japan. Created in 1500, the piece depicts the figures of Hanshan and Shide. The physical dimensions of the scroll measure 91.4 cm in height and 36.5 cm in width. The work is classified within the religious painting genre.
History & Provenance
It is held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York; its precise accession number is not recorded in the available documentation.
The hanging scroll 寒山拾得図 (Kanzan Jittoku zu), also known as Hanshan and Shide, was created in 1500 by the Japanese painter Kenkō Shōkei, an artist also known as Keison. It is executed in ink on paper and classified as a religious painting, depicting the two legendary Zen figures. The work measures 91.4 cm in height by 36.5 cm in width and was made in Japan.
It is held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York; its precise accession number is not recorded in the available documentation.
Overview
Kenkō Shōkei’s hanging scroll, dated to around the turn of the 16th century, presents a monochrome ink composition on paper. The work portrays two disheveled figures seated beneath a twisted pine, one clutching a scroll, the other a broom, their expressions animated and informal. Rendered in a single brushstroke palette, the painting exemplifies a modest yet evocative approach to religious subject matter.
Subject & Meaning
The two characters are identified as Hanshan and Shide, legendary Chinese hermits whose unconventional behavior was later embraced by Japanese Zen as an emblem of spontaneous enlightenment. Their patched robes and mischievous demeanor convey a sense of liberated wisdom, suggesting that true insight can arise outside formal monastic discipline.
Artist & collection
