Sumi-e. Shozo Sato
of a particular artist. This practice of copying has been used in art education for ages. Although copying masterpieces in a museum today has become a near impossibility, on the other hand because printing techniques today have become so technically advanced, one can easily obtain remarkable-quality reproductions for copying and studying at home.
Studying the ink paintings of great masters by working to make copies of them is a useful way to learn. This is my own copy piece of an autumn landscape masterpiece by Toyo Sesshu, “the saint of suiboku-ga.”
But copying correctly may not be as simple as it sounds. As an art student when I was young, I experienced such copying studies in Tokyo. And in the late 1980s, I traveled to China to study and compare the Chinese methods in art education with my own approach at the university level. While there, I attended the Zhejiang National Academy of Fine Arts in Hangzou. There the professor of painting in charge of instructing “visiting students” gave me his work of a sumi-e landscape to copy. I set about to faithfully copy his work and awaited his return to the studio for his critique. He told me, “You have copied the work well and the paintings look so much alike. However, your method of copying is not correct.” Unsure of his methods and wishes, I had taken his recommendation to “copy” as meaning to reproduce an identical version of his work.
But when artwork is to be reproduced for the painter’s education, the first task is to study the brush techniques. These details in brush strokes should be studied and then internalized. Secondly, when recreating a work of art, a personal quality of the student or copier should remain.
As a professor in fine arts in universities in the United States, I have not used copying as a teaching tool. However, during one of my intense summer sumi-e workshops, we did focus on making copies of two masterpieces, in this case works by Sesshu. Toyo Sesshu (1420–1506) has often been called the “saint of suiboku-ga.” Sesshu traveled to China in 1467 to study techniques and styles of the Sung to Ming dynasties. These works are in the style of the Northern Sung paintings which were very popular in China during that time. Upon his return to Japan, Sesshu blended what he had learned in China with methods and techniques he developed on his own, and crystallized these into his own style. Many great masterpieces of his work in both Chinese and Japanese landscapes still remain today.
This pair, landscape scenes of autumn and winter, are replicas of Japanese National Treasures. The images shown here are my own copy pieces.
Sesshu often used light transparent hues over his suibokuga, which we also used for the autumn scene in our workshop reproductions. In addition, to add a sense of patina, I used tea which had been steeped overnight, in some cases diluting it with water for a lighter stain. This method of using tea is common when recreating ancient masterpieces. (Counterfeiters and forgers of old artworks also use this technique.)
In my copy of the winter landscape, the snow is enhanced by leaving more whiteness of the paper visible, especially on the trees.
This is my own copy piece of another Japanese National Treasure done by Sesshu. The winter landscape is enhanced by leaving more whiteness of paper visible, especially on the trees. In making study copies of masterpieces, the original artist’s signature may be copied; however, one is not permitted to copy the original artist’s seal, which holds much significance in Japanese culture.
CHAPTER 2
Four Treasures in the Studio
China, from its earliest days, has revered its four treasures: the brush, sumi ink, the grinding stone and paper. However, since the Ming Dynasty, additions have been made to these four treasures. Other necessary equipment for calligraphers and painters includes items like a stand on which to hang brushes; some sort of “rest” for the ink stick; a suiteki which is a special small water container; a small spoon for adding water to grinding stones; paper weights; and a seal and stamp pad.
These objects can range from simple utilitarian pieces to highly decorated pieces which themselves become art. In more recent times these craft pieces have become items of interest for antique collectors. In their travels to China for study, Buddhist monks brought the four treasures of equipment back to Japan. Especially during the Edo Period in Japan when the arts and crafts flourished, artists and calligraphers reverently collected these Chinese objects. In juxtaposition, the Zen philosophical influence on writers and painters was that the studio reflect minimalism and simplicity instead of highly decorated antique objects. A Zen-oriented artist endeavors to develop a refined spiritual element in his work which an over-decorated studio will not inspire.
BRUSHES: TYPES, EFFECTS AND CARE
A saying in Japan over the centuries has been “Kobo does not choose a type of brush.” This maxim is used to teach young students of art that it is not the expensive tool that matters, but having a true desire for study. Kobo Daishi (774–835 A.D.), also known as Kukai, was a famous Buddhist priest who traveled to China and studied Chinese Buddhism. However, maxims aside, historical documents reveal that Kobo himself, while tutoring the emperor in calligraphy, remarked that the choice of brush was very important depending upon whether one is writing in formal, semi-formal, or informal “grass” style. Besides his accomplishments as a priest, including establishing the Shingon Namikkyo Sect of Buddhism, Kukai was very versatile in talent and is still considered one of the three all-time best calligraphers of Japan. Later the emperor bestowed the title of Daishi (“great master”) on him. Throughout the ages he has been considered one of the “saints” of calligraphy. Another Japanese proverb that references him is “even Kobo Daishi makes mistakes with a brush,” indicating that no perfect human being exists.
The student of sumi-e must recognize the various types of brushes and how they are constructed. If you purchase those mass-produced inexpensive brushes, you will become disenchanted because the brush will not perform as expected. A disillusioned person will eventually give up on training. For this reason, even a beginner should start with a quality (and more expensive) brush as an investment. Such a brush will last for several decades. After the basics of brush usage and techniques have been mastered, a creative artist can produce work without the use of a brush but instead with fingertips, a long beard, a sponge or even rolled-up or crushed paper. All of these can function to create a painting or work in calligraphy. But the brush is where to begin.
Types of Brush Hair
Brushes for calligraphy and sumi-e are constructed from the hairs and whiskers of weasels, squirrels, martens/sable, raccoons, wild boars, horses, sheep, cats and humans. The specific use for the brush will determine the kinds of hair and/or whiskers used and the location of these various hairs within the bristle. The knowledge required for the blending of the hairs in specific brushes takes years of apprenticeship, training and creativity on the part of the brush maker. To know whether to take the hair from the tail, body or whiskers and how to create a skillful combination is the work of a master craftsman. Some artists have been known to have had very personal brushes crafted from human hair, with hairs lovingly gathered from the artist’s child for example. Today it is becoming increasingly difficult for brush makers to obtain hairs and whiskers from wild animals, so a wide variety of domestic animals’ hair, such as horse, is used. In addition to the horse’s mane and tail, all its other hairs from soft to coarse are used and 90% of most brushes today are made of horse hair.
A front view (right) and cross-section view (left) of a sumi-e brush. The cross-section view shows where the hairs have been glued, bound and wrapped tightly with string before being anchored in the brush’s stem.
Once when I was in Beijing, I was shopping for a large mountain horse hair brush. The brush shown at right came in a large beautiful box covered with cloth brocade. Written on the cover of the box was “this is a sacred mountain