was a Japanese

painter Painting is a Visual arts, visual art, which is characterized by the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called "matrix" or "Support (art), support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with ...

, one of the last to paint in the style of the

Kanō school The is one of the most famous schools of Japanese painting. The Kanō school of painting was the dominant style of painting from the late 15th century until the Meiji era, Meiji period which began in 1868, by which time the school had divided i ...

. He is also considered the founder of ''

Nihonga ''Nihonga'' () is a Japanese style of painting that typically uses mineral pigments, and occasionally ink, together with other organic pigments on silk or paper. The term was coined during the Meiji period (1868–1912) to differentiate it from ...

'' and was an educator who trained many ''Nihonga'' painters. Many of the painters recognized in later generations as great ''Nihonga'' masters, such as

Yokoyama Taikan was the art-name of a major figure in pre-World War II Japanese painting. He is notable for helping create the Japanese painting technique of ''Nihonga''. Early life Sakai Hidemaro (known as Yokoyama Taikan) was born in Mito city, Ibaraki P ...

, Shimomura Kanzan,

Hishida Shunsō was the art-name, pseudonym of a Japanese painting, Japanese painter from the Meiji period. One of Okakura Kakuzō, Okakura Tenshin's pupils along with Yokoyama Taikan and Kanzan Shimomura, Shimomura Kanzan, he played a role in the Meiji era in ...

and

Kawai Gyokudō was the pseudonym of a Japanese painter in the nihonga school, active from Meiji through Shōwa period Japan. His real name was Kawai Yoshisaburō. Biography Gyokudō was born in what is now Ichinomiya city, Aichi Prefecture, as the eldest ...

, were his students. He was one of the first five painters to be appointed as an Imperial Household Artist and was one of the most authoritative painters in Japan at that time.

Biography

Born in

Edo Edo (), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the '' de facto'' capital of Japan from 1603 as the seat of the Tokugawa shogu ...

, he was a son of a painter. After studying under his father, he continued his studies with Kanō Shōsen'in, and was also influenced by the work of Kanō Hōgai. He created many works in the traditional style of the Kanō school, employing color and gold, or otherwise utilizing monochrome black ink. Although his paintings are predominantly traditional, employing traditional methods and depicting traditional subjects, Gahō, like Kanō Hōgai, also incorporated elements of Western art. Brushstrokes, various types of detailing, and particularly attempts at proper depiction of perspective are evident in Gahō's paintings and in many others of this period. His talent led him to become a studio director at the age of 22 and he was placed in charge of his master's school. Due to the political and economic upheavals surrounding the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...

, he was compelled to seek income beyond selling fine art. He produced maps for the Naval Academy, painted on fans exported to China, and utilized his skills in various other ways to earn a living. Following a revival of interest in Japanese painting during the 1880s, he twice won a prize at the government-sponsored picture exhibitions which led him to become famous. Gahō was invited in 1884, by

Okakura Kakuzō , also known as Okakura Tenshin , was a Japanese scholar and art critic who in the era of Meiji Restoration reform promoted a critical appreciation of traditional forms, customs and beliefs. Outside Japan, he is chiefly renowned for '' The Book ...

, to become the chief professor of painting at the ''Tōkyō Bijutsu Gakkō'' (東京美術学校, now the

Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music or is a school of art and music in Japan. Located in Ueno Park, it also has facilities in Toride, Ibaraki, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Kitasenju and Adachi, Tokyo. The university has trained artists in the fields of painting, sculpture, crafts, inter ...

) which would open five years later. His students included

and

who would become future masters of Japanese painting. In 1898, Gahō joined Okakura in leaving the Bijutsu Gakkō, and founding the Japan Fine Arts Academy (日本美術院, ''Nihon Bijutsuin''). He would teach there until his death in 1908. As a result of his position as chief painting professor, Gahō had a number of important pupils, including

and

Works

Ryūko-zu Byōbu by Hashimoto Gahō(Part of the tiger).jpg, Folding screen ''Dragon and tiger'' (竜虎図) left side, 1895. Important Cultural Property. Seikadō Bunko Art Museum Ryūko-zu Byōbu by Hashimoto Gahō(Part of the dragon).jpg, Folding screen ''Dragon and tiger'' right side, 1895. Important Cultural Property. Seikadō Bunko Art Museum Hashimoto Gaho 001.jpg, ''Dragon against tiger''. Colour on silk, 1899.

Museum of the Imperial Collections A museum is an institution dedicated to displaying or preserving culturally or scientifically significant objects. Many museums have exhibitions of these objects on public display, and some have private collections that are used by researchers ...

References

* Baekeland, Freddy (1885). "Hashimoto Gahō." Kodansha Encyclopedia of Japan. Tokyo: Kodansha Ltd.

External links

Hashimoto Gahō Japanese painter / Encyclopedia Britannica

§ No. 5 HASHIMOTO Gaho, an artist retained by the Kawagoe Domain at the end of the Edo Period, who created a new style of Japanese painting with OKAKURA Tenshin in the Meiji Period
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hashimoto, Gaho 1835 births 1908 deaths 20th-century Japanese people 19th-century Japanese artists 19th-century Japanese painters 20th-century Japanese painters Imperial household artists Kanō school Artists from Tokyo Metropolis