Hon'ami Koetsu

Japanese: 本阿弥光悦 - ほんあみこうえつ

An artist from the Momoyama to early Edo period. Born in Kyoto. His pen names include Taikyoan, Jitokusai, and Tokuyusai. Since the founder Myohon, who is said to have served Ashikaga Takauji, the Honami family was a powerful upper-class townsman who prospered through the three businesses of polishing, cleaning, and appraising swords. Since the time of Koetsu's great-grandfather Honkou, the family has also been ardent followers of the Nichiren sect. Koetsu's mother was Myoshu, the eldest daughter of the 7th generation Koshin, and his father was Kouji, who was Koshin's adopted son and branched off from the family. In 1615 (Genwa 1), he moved to Takagamine, which he received from Tokugawa Ieyasu, with his family and many other craftspeople, and established an art village known as Koetsu Village, leaving a great mark on the history of early modern Japanese art. He died on February 3, 1620. The place where the Koetsu family's rank monument was located in Takagamine was later turned into a temple, and was named Koetsu-ji Temple.

[Tamiko Oshita]

The Art of Koetsu

Koetsu not only excelled in his family profession but also in many other fields, but he was especially known for his calligraphy, and was known as one of the "Three Great Calligraphers of the Kan'ei Era" along with Konoe Nobutada and Shokado Shojo. He is said to have first learned the Shoren-in style of calligraphy from Prince Soncho, but went on to create his own unique style of calligraphy, full of splendor and decoration, the like of which had never been seen before in the history of Japanese calligraphy. His unique style of calligraphy features subtle variations in the thickness and thinness of lines and the speed of the brushstrokes, transforming the shapes of the characters into elegant forms. As the name "Honami-gire" (named after his favorite book) suggests, the work is based on ancient calligraphy and the Jodai-yo style, and the style of the printed calligraphy shows the strong influence of the Southern Song calligrapher Zhang Xizhi, who was especially respected among connoisseurs of the time. He made all of this a part of himself, and furthermore, he allowed it to flourish in the spirit of the Momoyama period. His true worth is particularly apparent in the poetry scrolls that he produced energetically from the Keicho period (1596-1615) through the beginning of the Genna period (1615-24). These works were written on gorgeous paper with an abundant amount of gold and silver paint, said to have been the work of Tawaraya Sotatsu and others. Extant works include the "Waka Scroll with Illustrations of Seasonal Flowers," the "Waka Scroll with Illustrations of Cranes," and the "Waka Scroll with Illustrations of Deer." In addition, there are other works that show his remarkable calligraphy activities, such as the Sagabon edition published by Suminokura Soan with great financial resources, Buddhist works such as "Rissho Ankokuron" concentrated in 1619 (Genwa 5), and the "Wakan Roeishu" (Wakan Roeishu) published during the Kan'ei period (1624-1644), which always included a yearbook. His creative drive was overflowing until his death at the age of 80 in 1624, but the calligraphy of his later years shows a noticeable decline in his brushwork and shaky lines. His style of calligraphy was inherited by Soan, Karasuma Mitsuhiro, Kojima Muneshin and others, forming a major movement known as the Koetsu school, which remained popular until the Genroku period (1688-1704).

Meanwhile, Koetsu's pottery production became more active after his retirement to Takamine, and in addition to the "Fujiyama" (National Treasure), many excellent Raku tea bowls have been preserved. He also left behind a series of works familiarly referred to as Koetsu maki-e, such as the "Funabashi Maki-e Inkstone Box" (National Treasure, Tokyo National Museum) and the "Shofu Maki-e Inkstone Box" (Important Cultural Property, MOA Museum of Art, Shizuoka). It is hard to imagine that Koetsu himself was involved in the production of maki-e, which requires highly specialized techniques, but the innovative designs and decorative techniques, based on a rich classical education, were likely the ideas of Koetsu himself. These are important relics that could be said to be some of the most fascinating in the history of lacquer work.

[Tamiko Oshita]

"Japanese Names Series 23, 34, 71: Letters of Hon'ami Koetsu, supervised by Komatsu Shigemi (1978, 1983, Nikkensha)" ▽ "Calligraphy Art 18: Hon'ami Koetsu, edited by Nakata Yujiro (1976, Chuokoron-Shinsha)" ▽ "Koetsu Letters 1, written by Komatsu Shigemi (1980, Nikkensha)" ▽ "Ink-Wash Art Series 10: Koetsu, Sotatsu, Korin, edited by Yamane Yuzo (1977, Kodansha)" ▽ "Japanese Ceramics 10: Koetsu, edited by Hayashiya Seizo (1977, Kodansha)" ▽ "Ceramics Series 18: Koetsu, Doinyu, written by Akanuma Taka (1977, Heibonsha)" ▽ "Koetsu, written by Okada Yuzuru and others (1964, Daiichi Hoki Publishing)"

[Reference] | Koetsuji Temple | Koetsu Tea Bowl | Lacquerware

Fragment of a waka scroll of the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu
Right: Sakyo-no-dayu Kensuke, "The clear shadow of the moon shining through the gaps in the clouds drifting in the autumn wind." Left: Taikenmon-in Horikawa, "I do not know how long my heart has grown. My black hair is disheveled. This morning I am thinking of something." Calligraphy by Hon'ami Koetsu, drawn by Tawaraya Sotatsu, owned by the Metropolitan Museum of Art .

Fragment of a waka poem scroll from the Ogura Hyakunin Isshu

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

桃山から江戸初期にかけての芸術家。京都の人。号は太虚庵、自得斎、徳友斎など。本阿弥家は足利尊氏(たかうじ)に仕えたと伝える初祖明本(みょうほん)以来、刀剣の磨礪(とぎ)・浄拭(ぬぐい)・鑑定(めきき)の三事を業として栄えてきた有力な上層町衆で、光悦の曽祖父(そうそふ)本光(ほんこう)の代より、熱心な法華宗(ほっけしゅう)信徒の家柄でもあった。光悦は7代光心の長女妙秀を母とし、光心の養嗣子(しし)となって分家した光二を父とする。1615年（元和1）徳川家康より拝領の鷹峯(たかがみね)に一族や多くの工芸家とともに移住し、光悦村とよばれるいわば芸術村を開き、近世初頭の日本美術史上に偉大な足跡を残した。寛永(かんえい)14年2月3日没。鷹峯の光悦一族の位碑(いはい)所はのち寺堂となり、光悦寺と称する。

［尾下多美子］

光悦の芸術

光悦は、家職はもちろん、さまざまな分野で優れた足跡を残しているが、ことに能書で聞こえ、近衛信尹(このえのぶただ)、松花堂昭乗(しょうかどうしょうじょう)と並んで「寛永(かんえい)の三筆」と称された。初め尊朝(そんちょう)法親王より青蓮院(しょうれんいん)流の書法を学んだと伝えるが、日本書道史上かつてなかった華麗で装飾性あふれる独自の書風を創出した。線の細太、運筆の速度に際やかな変化をつけ、文字の姿を瀟洒(しょうしゃ)に変形させた個性的な書である。彼の愛蔵にちなむという「本阿弥切(ぎれ)」の名が物語るように、古筆、上代様(じょうだいよう)を土壌としたものであり、また楷書(かいしょ)の文字には、当時の数寄(すき)者たちの間でことに尊重された南宋(なんそう)の書家張即之(ちょうそくし)の影響も色濃くうかがえるが、それらすべてを彼自身の血肉と化し、さらに桃山という時代精神のもとで大きく開花させた。ことに、慶長(けいちょう)（1596～1615）から元和(げんな)（1615～24）の初めにかけて精力的に制作された詩歌巻に彼の真骨頂が発揮されている。これは、俵屋宗達(たわらやそうたつ)らの手になると伝える金銀泥をふんだんに用いた豪華な下絵の料紙に揮毫(きごう)したもので、伝存するものに「四季草花下絵和歌巻」「鶴下絵和歌巻」「鹿下絵和歌巻」などがある。このほか、角倉素庵(すみのくらそあん)が財力を注いで刊行した嵯峨(さが)本の版下揮毫、1619年（元和5）に集中する『立正安国論(りっしょうあんこくろん)』などの仏書、そしてかならず年記を加えた寛永年間（1624～44）の『和漢朗詠集』の数々などと、特筆すべき能書活動を伝える。寛永14年80歳で没するまで創作意欲は横溢(おういつ)したが、晩年の書には筆力の衰えと線の震えが目だつ。彼の書風は、素庵、烏丸光広(からすまみつひろ)、小島宗真らに継承され、光悦流という一大潮流を形成して、元禄(げんろく)（1688～1704）のころまで流行した。

　一方、光悦の作陶は鷹峯隠棲(いんせい)以後活発化し、「不二山」（国宝）のほか、多くの楽茶碗(らくちゃわん)の優品が伝存する。また「舟橋蒔絵硯箱(ふなばしまきえすずりばこ)」（国宝、東京国立博物館）、「樵夫(しょうふ)蒔絵硯箱」（重文、静岡・MOA美術館）など光悦蒔絵の呼称で親しまれる一連の作品も残している。高度な専門技術を要する蒔絵の制作に彼自ら携わったとはとうてい考えることはできないが、豊かな古典の素養に基づいた斬新(ざんしん)な意匠、装飾的な技法は光悦自身の発想によるものであろう。漆工史上もっとも魅力的というべき重要な遺品である。

［尾下多美子］

『小松茂美監修『日本名跡叢刊 23・34・71　本阿弥光悦　書状他』（1978、83・二玄社）』▽『中田勇次郎編『書道芸術 18　本阿弥光悦』（1976・中央公論社）』▽『小松茂美著『光悦書状 1』（1980・二玄社）』▽『山根有三編『水墨美術大系 10　光悦・宗達・光琳』（1977・講談社）』▽『林屋晴三編『日本のやきもの 10　光悦』（1977・講談社）』▽『赤沼多佳著『陶磁大系 18　光悦・道入』（1977・平凡社）』▽『岡田譲他著『光悦』（1964・第一法規出版）』

[参照項目] | 光悦寺 | 光悦茶碗 | 漆器

小倉百人一首和歌巻断簡
右：左京大夫顕輔　「秋風に　たなびく雲の　たえ間より　もれいづる月の　影のさやけさ」　左：待賢門院堀河（堀川）　「長からむ　心も知らず　黒髪の　乱れて今朝は　ものをこそ思へ」　本阿弥光悦書　俵屋宗達下画メトロポリタン美術館所蔵">

小倉百人一首和歌巻断簡

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