Sesshū Tōyō

1420-1506 Japanese

Master of Japanese ink landscape painting

Sesshū Tōyō(雪舟等楊) (1420–1506), originally named Dosho(等楊), also called Sesshū Tōyō(雪舟等楊), was a Japanese painter from the Muromachi period. He was born in Bitchū Akahama (now Sōja City, Okayama Prefecture). As a child, he became a monk at Sōkoku-ji Temple and studied Song and Yuan painting techniques from the landscape painter Shubun. In 1467, he traveled to China with a Japanese mission, visiting Ningbo Tiantong Temple, where he earned the title ‘First Seat in Zen Painting,’ and during that time, he also toured famous mountains and rivers in China. After returning to Japan in 1469, he left the monastery and opened the painting studio 'Tenkaizu Picture Hall' in Ōita and Yamaguchi. Sesshū copied the works of Southern Song painters like Xia Gui and Li Tang. Surviving copies include 'Imitations of Xia Gui Landscapes' and 'Small Landscape Scroll.' His famous works like 'Four Seasons Landscapes' and 'A View of Amanohashidate' blend Chinese ink techniques with Japanese real-life scenery. In his later years, he retired in Iwami Province (now Shimane Prefecture) and kept creating art, passing away at Tōkō-ji Temple in 1506. In 1956, he was posthumously recognized as a world cultural figure at the Vienna World Peace Conference.