Letter by Hon-ami Koetsu
- Person
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作者本阿弥光悦
- Date
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制作年 AD17
- Title
- ホンアミコウエツヒツショジョウ
- Collections
- Century Akao Collection
- Depository
- Institute of Oriental Classics (Shido Bunko) Campus Mita
- Ref. number
- AW-CEN-000220-0000
- License
- CC BY Images license
- Creditline
-
慶應義塾（センチュリー赤尾コレクション）
- URL
- Classification
- Art
- AI Tagging
- Handwriting Font Rectangle Monochrome Pattern
Hon-ami Koetsu (1558-1637) was both a calligrapher and artisan active between the late Momoyama Period and the early Edo Period. He was born into the Hon-ami family, which for generations had engaged in polishing, cleaning and appreciating Japanese swords. When his father, Koji, established his own house, breaking away from the main Hon-ami lineage, Koetsu was, more or less, released from the traditional family profession.As such, Koetsu established an art village in Takaga-Mine, where he devoted himself to ink-and-brush painting, makie (sprinkled pictures) and pottery making, which resulted in numerous works of fine art. In calligraphy, he was hailed as one of the ‘Three Brushes of the Kanei Era’, meaning one of the three most outstanding calligraphers of that timeDuring the Keicho Era (1596-1615), Koetsu created calligraphic works on lavishly decorated ryoshi paper, painted by Tawaraya Sotatsu and, expounding the Jodai (classical) Style, exhibited an outstanding fluent and elegant brush strokes. In the following Genna Era (1615-24), however, one can see the obvious influence of China’s Song Dynasty styles as transmitted by calligraphers like Zhang Jinzhi and Priest Kukai. The resultant style is characterized by extremely varied thick and thin lines, which were later hailed as the Koetsu School and attracted numerous followers, including Suminokura Soan, Kojima Soshin, and Ogata Soken.In sado (tea ceremony; way of tea), Koetsu trained under Master Furuta Oribe and was an outstanding disciple, comparable to Kobori Enshu. Hon-ami Koetsu sent this letter to his nephew, Hon-ami Koshitsu (1583-1625), thanking him for the gift of the season’s first salmon. His nephew himself had received the salmon, from northern Japan, as a gift before passing it on to Koetsu living in Kyoto. Koshitsu, the only son of Koetsu’s sister, Myoko, who had been betrothed to Kotoku, was the armory officer of the Tokugawa military government and, therefore, was living in Edo (today’s Tokyo).In this letter dated September 10th, Koetsu says that he has heard from Kosa (1578-1637; Koetsu’s adopted heir) that Koshitsu’s daughter Osen is growing up finely. Furthermore, he writes that the family cooked the salmon and relished it. The letter speaks to the warmth of Koetsu’s family.
八月廿八日之貴札七日之夜拝見何御息災之由目出義存候此方同事可御心易候お千殿御成人満足申儀候先度従光瑳具被申旨ニ候将亦初鮭上被下候則八日口切仕候皆々被入驚候御懇意之至存儀候尚追而可申上候恐惶謹言徳友斎九十日光悦（花押）光室翁様回章
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- Letter by Hon-ami Koetsu
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Quantity 1幅
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