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hakubyou 白描 | ||||||
KEY WORD : art history / paintings | ||||||
Although
the term literally means white drawing, hakubyou 白描 is a technique of painting
that relies primarily on the use of brushline in monochromatic ink to define form,
express movement and capture the essence of the object portrayed. The ink itself
is usually black, but occasionally silver or gold is used, and the markedly fine
yet taut quality of the line distinguishes hakubyou from ink painting *suibokuga
水墨画, which incorporates broader, fluctuating brushstrokes and shading. This technique
was also used in copying finished paintings, or for preparatory sketches or underdrawings.
As a finished work, hakubyou rejects color, believed to inhibit the freedom
of brushlines. Hakubyou was actually considered to be more expressive than
polychrome painting, especially in its use of modulated lines to suggest volume
and movements. The technique, believed to have evolved in China sometime during
the Warring States period, reflects the Chinese appreciation of monochromatic
painting, which most eloquently expresses the purity and power of brushlines.
Mentioned in early literature as paihua (Jp: hakuga 白画 or white painting),
it was apparently practised by many well-known artists, including Gu Kaizhi
(Jp: Ko Gaishi 顧豈之, ca.344-ca.406), whose works in this style no longer exist. The
technique was perfected during the Tang dynasty by the great figure painter Wu
Daoxuan (Jp: Go Dougen 呉道玄, act. ca. 720-60), whose prowess in the use of powerful and expressive
modulated brushstrokes became legendary. The popularity of paihua at this time
also reflected the widely-held belief that calligraphy and painting are one and
the same. In the second half of the eighth century, the technique's popularity
was finally surpassed by that of ink painting, which employs shading and wash
to define planes. Later, a Northern Sung dynasty painter, Li Kung-Lin (Jp: Li Kourin 李公麟, ca.
1040-1106), used paihua to its utmost advantage. Still later, in the Yuan dynasty,
its popularity revived under the new name of pai miao (Jp: hakubyou).
Hakubyou was introduced to Japan some time before the mid-8 century, when
it was called soga 素画 (plain painting). A number of examples are found
in the *Shousouin 正倉院
imperial repository at Toudaiji 東大寺 in Nara, including small objects decorated
in gold or silver ink. Later, in works of Heian period literature like Murasaki
Shikibu's diary MURASAKI SHIKIBU NIKKI 紫式部日記 and the EIGA MONOGATARI
栄華物語 Hatsuhana chapter, which chronicles the fortunes of the ruling Fujiwara 藤原
family, the technique was also called sumi-e 墨絵 (black-ink picture). Much
later, during the Edo period, some literature such as the KIYUU SHOURAN
嬉遊笑覧 (a collection of essays by Kitamura Nobuyo 喜多村信節, ed. 1830), refers to it
as shira-e 白絵 (white picture). Strictly speaking, all these different terms
refer to the drawing technique which limits or refrains entirely from the use
of shading thus emphasizing the purity and expressive power of the brush lines.
It went out of fashion after suibokuga was introduced from China in the
late 13c. Japanese hakubyou evolved along two separate paths; the first
is represented by all types of preliminary drawings or sketches, and copies of
finished paintings such as Buddhist icons. In this technique, brushlines may be
modulated and some light colors added, as can be seen in Buddhist drawings made
for the study of iconography. This group also includes the scrolls known as the
Choujuu Jinbutsu Giga 鳥獣人物戯画 (Folicking Animals and Humans), in the Kouzanji
高山寺 collection in Kyoto, and a group of works known as *nise-e
似絵 (likeness picture), realistic representations of historical personages or animals,
and even inanimate objects. In sharp contrast to this group is the second category
of works, known as hakubyou yamato-e 白描やまと絵. This consists of finished
works, most of which illustrate courtly literature of the Heian period. Among
them are handscrolls like the Takafusa-kyou Tsuyakotoba emaki 隆房卿艶詞絵巻 (Lord
Takafusa's Love Songs) and Makura no Soushi emaki 枕草子絵巻 (illustrations
of Sei Shounagon's 清少納言 Pillow Book). These hakubyou works rely on extremely
delicate, unmodulated lines. They occasionally exhibit the palest shades of ink
wash and tiny spots in red ink for lips and other small details. Where solid areas
of coal-black ink are applied for gentlemen's caps of state or long, flowing hair
of the ladies, the technique produces a startling contrast of black and gray,
and creates a haunting, dreamlike quality that evokes fantasy and nostalgia toward
the halcyon days of the Heian period. |
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(C)2001 Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System. No reproduction or republication without written permission. 掲載のテキスト・写真・イラストなど、全てのコンテンツの無断複製・転載を禁じます。 |
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