38-1/8 x 14-3/8 in.
signed: Hokusōō Itchō 北窓翁一蝶図 circular relief seal: Shuzai san’un senseki kan趣在山雲泉石間 square relief seal: Hanabusa in英印
Mr. and Mrs. Richard Crane Fund
Asian Art (Japanese and Korean)
布袋と子供図
Hotei, or Budai in Chinese, was a monk from Mt. Siming in China. Normally pictured with a large round belly, a staff in one hand and a sack with all his belongings in the other, he was known for his carefree wandering. In Zen Buddhism he symbolized enlightened innocence, and in Japan he became one of the Seven Gods of Good Fortune.
Here Hotei and a child excitedly look up into the sky at a beautiful long-tailed bird (Sankōchō, Japanese paradise-flycatcher). Itchō has changed Hotei's staff into an umbrella that is strikingly decorated with a crane and waves. Itchō's good-natured wit and skilled brush create a simple yet lovely and harmonious vignette.
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