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Kayama Matazo
Japanese, 1927-2004
Star Festival (Tanabata), 1968
Six-panel screen; ink, color, gold, and silver on silk
166.4 x 371.5 cm
Saint Louis Art Museum, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Kayama Matazo, The Japan America Society of St. Louis, and Dr. J. Peggy Adeboi (150.1987), Obj: 191650
この屏風では空と大地と海が、模様の複雑な配置の中に結びついている。裁断された沢山の銀箔できらめく真夜中の青色の回廊は、天の川とその星々を表し、七夕伝説の舞台である。
中国の民話では、織女星(ベガ星)と牽牛星(アルタイル星)が恋に落ち、勤めを怠ったため、罰として年に一度だけ七月七日の七夕の日にのみ、天空で出会えるようになったとされている。
恐らく加山又造は、その世代の画家の中で、最も屏風という形式に力を注いだ画家であろう。加山は、屏風絵において、構図の力強さ(離れて見た時)と細部の複雑さ(詳細に見た時)との組み合わせを得意とした。
In this single screen, sky, land, and sea tumultuously intertwine in a complex array of patterns. A midnight blue corridor sprinkled with a generous amount of cut silver foil represents the Milky Way and its stars, the stage upon which the legend of Tanabata is set. According to Chinese folklore, the constellations of the Weaving Princess (the star Vega) and the Herdsman (the star Altair) fell in love, but when they then neglected their duties, they were punished by being able to meet in the sky only once a year, on the seventh day of the seventh month (tanabata).
Kayama Matazo capitalized on the format of the folding screen perhaps more than any other artist of his generation. He felt he was best able to combine strength of composition (when viewed from a distance) and complexity of detail (when seen close-up) in his paintings on screens.
This work is on display for the entire exhibition period.
