Artwork
Untitled
Untitled is an ink painting by the Baroque artist Ogata Kōrin. It dates from 1708 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
As a representation of nature, the painting exemplifies the artist's engagement with floral motifs within the Japanese tradition.
Created in 1708 by Ogata Kōrin, this hanging scroll depicts a flower as its sole subject. Classified as a still life, the work utilizes ink and color on silk to render the botanical form. The iconography is direct, focusing entirely on the floral element without additional narrative figures or landscape settings.
As a representation of nature, the painting exemplifies the artist's engagement with floral motifs within the Japanese tradition.
Technique & Style
Ogata Kōrin created Untitled in 1708 as a hanging scroll painted in ink and color on silk. The work measures 110 cm in height by 41.3 cm in width and depicts a flower motif.
The painting is classified as a still life within the broader category of paintings and was produced in Japan. It is currently held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
History & Provenance
Ogata Kōrin created Untitled in 1708 as a hanging scroll painted in ink and color on silk, classified as a still_life depicting a flower. The work entered the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where it remains on display.
Provenance is documented through the museum's records, confirming its continued ownership since acquisition.
Untitled is a hanging scroll painted in ink and color on silk by Ogata Kōrin in 1708. The work measures 110 cm in height and 41.3 cm in width and depicts a flower. It is part of the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and has been exhibited there as part of the museum’s display of Japanese paintings.
Context
Ogata Kōrin created this ink and color on silk hanging scroll around 1708, depicting a flower motif. The work is part of the Metropolitan Museum of Art's collection, reflecting the artist's prominence in the still_life genre within the broader context of Edo-period Japanese painting and its influence on later interpretations of the genre.
Legacy
Ogata Kōrin's Untitled remains influential in the study of Japanese decorative painting, particularly for its contribution to the evolution of the hanging scroll format and the stylization of floral motifs within the Rinpa school tradition. Its compositional clarity and use of negative space have been cited in later analyses of early modern Japanese visual culture as exemplifying a synthesis of poetic subject matter and painterly abstraction. The work's presence in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's collection has facilitated scholarly attention to its role in shaping contemporary understandings of Edo-period artistic exchange, with its legacy reflected in subsequent exhibitions examining the development of East Asian ink painting.
Overview
Created in 1708, this hanging scroll by Ogata Kōrin presents a solitary flower rendered in ink and color on silk. Executed in the decorative aesthetic of the Rinpa school, the work exemplifies Kōrin’s preference for bold, simplified compositions that balance elegance with expressive brushwork.
Artist & collection
Artist
Ogata Kōrin (Japanese: 尾形光琳; 1658 – June 2, 1716) was a Japanese landscape illustrator, lacquerer, painter, and textile designer of the Rinpa School.
