Artwork Details
Artist
Creation Date
Materials
Object Types
Dimensions
50 x 109-1/4 in. (installed)
Period
Accession Number
Credit Line
Mr. and Mrs. William R. Spurlock Fund
Copyright
Collection
Asian Art (Japanese and Korean)
Color Palette
Gallery Labels
Irises are especially related to Boy’s Day (fifth day of the fifth lunar month, corresponding to late May or June in the solar calendar). Iris leaves resemble sword blades, and the word for iris, shobu, sounds like the word for "contest" or "match," which furthers the symbolic connection with warriors. Traditionally, warrior dolls are displayed in households on Boy’s Day.
In the Tales of Ise (8c), the hero, far from home, comes to a marsh crossed by a bridge of eight planks (Yatsuhashi). There, he composes "Irises," a poem expressing his longing for his wife.
Ogata Korin (1658–1716) painted several famous versions of irises, both with and without this bridge. Kiitsu’s rendition is based on Korin’s work.
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