Title: The Travel Diary of Kimura Hyakuboku, 1929, Volume 13. Travel Diary of the Tosa School and Watercolor Artist, With Nearly 300 Pages of Detailed Sketches, Ink and Wash, and Watercolor Paintings
Author: Kimura Hyakuboku
Condition: Very Good
An Early Showa Period, early 20th century manuscript, being the 13th numbered volume of the Travel Diary of Kimura Hyakuboku (1884-1977), Tosa School and Watercolor Artist, and later a Zen master.
There is a staggering quantity of 276 pages of detailed human portraits, figures of myth, animals, brightly decorated flowers, beautifully detailed landscapes and townscapes. Hyakuboku’s travel diary is richly illustrated of all his sights and visits, and personal thoughts brought to life. A veritable trove of artwork and diary entries, worthwhile of further study and research. Several European destinations are clearly visible in his work as well.
Born with the given name Seizo in Nagyo, Hyakuboku studied at the Tosa School of art under Hibino Hakukei as well as watercolor painting under Asai Chu. While a student at Kyoto Imperial University, he listened to a lecture on Zen, quit school, and began training. After serving in the military, he moved to Tokyo (Takinogawa) in 1918. In 1926, he held his first solo exhibition in his hometown of Nagoya, and in 1934, he opened a Zen meditation and painting dojo in Koganei, where he settled and lived until the end of his life, living there until his death in 1977 at the age of 91. Producing a veritable of litany of work, his productions tended to be ink wash paintings and prints, often featuring trees as a theme. He also has works with mountains as a theme. His portraits, which he created throughout his life, include hermits, Buddhas, and various depictions of Bodhidharma. Many portraits included real life examples of figures encountered throughout his lifetime.
One manuscript in quarto (24.5 x 17 cm), 167 leaves
This manuscript is in very good shape, with some rubbing and wear to the binding, and splitting to the head of the spine. There is very little foxing or staining throughout.