Kuniyoshi: Daruma and Future Events
Artist: Utagawa Kuniyoshi
Title: Daruma and Future Events
Date: 1858, 8th month
Daruma on the Shelf Teaches Us the Signs of Future Events (Tana no daruma, Satori no kuchimoto). We have a large, bold image of Daruma the monk looking concerned at right. To the left are ordinary people doing day-to-day activities with cartouches describing them. Daruma’s robe contains a lead pigment, which was added to the orange to give the layer of unpredictable lead grey. Daruma is another name for Bodhidharma, the Buddhist monk who founded Japanese Zen Buddhism. Perhaps he is concerned that they are frittering their lives away in wasteful ordinary activities rather than devoting their lives to the study and practice of Zen.
Condition: Excellent impression; color and condition. Slight surface soil and very minor binding holes near margin.Publisher: Enshuya Hikobei
Signature: Ichiyûsai Kuniyoshi hitsu
Literature: See BM online.
Size: ôban diptych (37.2 x 51 cm)
SKU: KUC201