Suntory Museum of Art
About the Museum
Collection
Notable Works
Phoenixes by Paulownia Trees

Notable Works

Paintings

Lacquerware
Ceramics
Paintings
Glass
Textiles
Metalwork

Phoenixes by Paulownia Trees

Click on the photograph for a larger image

Artist: Kano Tan'yu( 1602 - 1674 )
Number of components: Pair of six-panel folding screens
Format and materials: Color on paper
Dimensions (in cm): L. 158.6, W. 371.8 (each)
Date of production: Edo period 17th century

The phoenix together with the dragon, the qilin, and the tortoise are the four auspicious beasts in Chinese mythology. The right half of this folding screen depicts a pair of phoenixes and a chick to express affection between parents and children while the left half depicts a male and a female phoenix exchanging glances. The subjects are widely spaced on a golden ground, creating a radiance that is appropriate to the phoenix, which appears when a sage governs the world. This suggests that the folding screen may have been painted for the marriage ceremony of Tokugawa Ietsuna, the fourth shōgun, in July 1657.

Notable Works

Phoenixes by Paulownia Trees

SUNTORY MUSEUM of ART