Unkei

Unkei was a Buddhist sculptor from the early Kamakura period, and is the most famous artist in the history of Japanese sculpture. His father was Jocho 5th generation, Kokei of the Kei school. At the time, the In school and En school, based in Kyoto, were powerful, trusted by the aristocracy, while the Kei school, which was based in Nara and belonged to Kofuku-ji Temple, was not doing well. However, during Unkei's time, he sought a place to shine among the Kanto samurai, and reversed the situation. In his prime, Unkei's Buddhist sculptor's rank rose from Hokkyo to Hogen and Hoin due to the creation of Buddha statues at Kofuku-ji Temple in Nara, and in his later years he mainly worked on projects related to the Kamakura Shogunate. Unkei's work was unprecedented, even at a time when the creation of Buddha statues was popular, and this shows not only his skill but also his popularity. There are many works from his 60-year career as a Buddhist sculptor, but the only ones that remain are the Dainichi Nyorai statue at Enjoji Temple in Nara (1176), the Amida Nyorai, Fudo, and Bishamonten statues at Ganjojuin Temple in Shizuoka (1186), the Amida Triad, Fudo, and Bishamonten statues at Jorakuji Temple in Kanagawa (1189), the Eight Great Children statues at the Fudo Hall at Mount Koya (1197), the Maitreya, Asakura, and Vasubandhu statues at the Hokuen Hall of Kofukuji Temple in Nara (around 1212), and the Kongorikishi statues at Todaiji Temple (1203), which he created in collaboration with Kaikei. He is said to have died on December 11, 1271.

Unkei's style was a further development of the realism that had begun with Kōkei, and in contrast to the formalized aristocratic statues of the late Heian period, his works were characterized by masculine appearances, imposing physiques, deep and complex lines in the folds of clothing, and free-flowing poses, while incorporating the classics of sculpture from the Tenpyō period onwards. These works were well received by the samurai class of the time, and he received many orders from the shogunate and other powerful clans. His sons Tankei, Kōkatsu, and Kōben, as well as Kōkei's disciple Kaikei, continued to be active after him, and the sculpture world in the first half of the Kamakura period was the era of the Kei school, with Unkei at its center. His style also left a major mark on sculpture in the Kanto region, and the so-called Kamakura regional style was based on this Unkei style.

[Akio Sato]

"Unkei and Kamakura Sculpture" by Keizaburo Mizuno (1972, Shogakukan) "Unkei" by Fumio Hayashi (1980, Shin Nihon Shuppansha)

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

鎌倉初期の仏師で、日本彫刻史上にもっとも有名な作家。父は定朝(じょうちょう)5代目と称する慶派の康慶(こうけい)。当時は京都に根拠を置く院派、円派が貴族階層の信任を受けて勢力があり、興福寺に所属し、奈良を中心とする慶派は振るわなかったが、運慶の代には関東武士の間に活躍の場を求め、その情勢を逆転させるに至った。壮年期には奈良の興福寺の造仏により、仏師としての僧綱位(そうごうい)も法橋(ほっきょう)から法眼(ほうげん)、法印(ほういん)へと上り、晩年には主として鎌倉幕府関係の仕事を手がけるなど、運慶の制作は造仏の盛んだった当時でも例のないほどで、実力もさることながら、人気のほどが察せられる。約60年にわたる仏師としての生涯における作品は、文献上では多いが、確実な遺品として現存するのは奈良円成寺大日如来(だいにちにょらい)像（1176）、静岡願成就院阿弥陀(あみだ)如来・不動・毘沙門天(びしゃもんてん)像（1186）、神奈川浄楽寺阿弥陀三尊・不動・毘沙門天像（1189）、高野山(こうやさん)不動堂の八大童子像（1197）、奈良興福寺北円堂弥勒(みろく)・無著(むじゃく)・世親(せしん)像（1212ころ）、快慶と合作の東大寺金剛力士像（1203）にすぎない。没年は貞応(じょうおう)2年12月11日と伝える。

　運慶の作風は、康慶に始まる写実主義を推し進め、平安末期の形式化した貴族趣味的な像に対し、男性的な風貌(ふうぼう)、堂々たる体躯(たいく)、深く複雑な衣文(えもん)線、自由な動きをもつ姿態などに特色があり、かつ天平(てんぴょう)以来の彫刻の古典をその作品に総合している。これが当時の武士階級に喜ばれ、幕府をはじめ諸豪族の注文も多かった。彼の子の湛慶(たんけい)、康勝、康弁、および康慶の弟子快慶などが、彼のあとも引き続いて活躍し、鎌倉時代前半の彫刻界は運慶中心の慶派の時代でもあった。彼の作風は関東の彫刻にも大きな足跡を残し、いわゆる鎌倉地方様式も、この運慶様を基としている。

［佐藤昭夫］

『水野敬三郎著『運慶と鎌倉彫刻』（1972・小学館）』▽『林文雄著『運慶』（1980・新日本出版社）』

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