The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of June 4, 2023

Freedom and Justice

自由 正義

1965

Bundō Shunkai 豊道 春海

(Japanese, 1878–1970)

Japan, Shōwa period

(1926-89)

Handscroll; ink on paper

Overall: 75 x 330 cm (29 1/2 x 129 15/16 in.)

Gift of Ms. Sato Bundo 1984.218

Location

not on view

Description

Bundo Shunkai, a calligrapher and Buddhist monk, was dedicated to establishing modern Japanese calligraphy and pursued the adaptation of Chinese Six Dynasty-style calligraphy. This oversized monumental handscroll reads (from right to left) "Freedom and Justice" and represents Japan’s newly adopted value of democracy, as influenced by Western culture of the 1960s.

Provenance
1965-1970
Bundō Shunkai 豊道 春海 [ 1878-1970], Tokyo, Japan, by descent to his daughter Sato Bundō
1970-1984
Ms. Sato Bundō, Tokyo, Japan, given to The Cleveland Museum of Art
1984-
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Citations
Sŏn, Sŭng-hye. The Lure of Painted Poetry: Japanese and Korean Art. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2011. cat. no. 93.
Exhibition history

Year in Review for 1984. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 3-May 5, 1985).

The Lure of Painted Poetry: Cross-cultural Text and Image in Korean and Japanese Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 15-August 21, 2011).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1984.218