2-737-491 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Paulownias and Chrysanthemums, late 1700s-early 1800s. In interior settings, particularly of the Yoshiwara (Edo's entertainment district), byobu are shown being used within large rooms to create more intimate areas for guests and hosts. Yet among the two-fold screens that one can see illustrated, beginning in the latter seventeenth century, Rinpa compositions, like this example, are difficult to locate. Invariably Chinese-style ink paintings and/or calligraphic panels are portrayed, thereby identifying the prevailing taste of the entertainment house owners and their customers.