Artwork Page for Portrait of Basho

Details / Information for Portrait of Basho

Portrait of Basho

1700s

Ichijun

(Japanese, active 1700s)
Culture
Japan, Edo period (1615–1868)
Medium
hanging scroll; ink and color on paper
Measurements
Painting only: 28.2 x 47 cm (11 1/8 x 18 1/2 in.); Including mounting: 112.5 x 64.2 cm (44 5/16 x 25 1/4 in.)
Credit Line
John L. Severance Fund 1988.72
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print

Description

The 15th-century poet Matsuo Basho is still considered Japan’s greatest master of the haiku poem, a short, 17-syllable verse form that relates some aspect of nature to the human experience. Although he was one of the most celebrated men of his day, he pursued a simple life of self-imposed poverty and solitude. In this portrait, Ichijun alluded to Matsuo’s haiku about the transient life: warau beshi naku beshi, waga asagao no, shibomu toki (to smile or to cry when my face in the morning [glory] is wilted).

Portrait of Basho

1700s

Ichijun

(Japanese, active 1700s)
Japan, Edo period (1615–1868)

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