Otake Chikuha (1878–1936) 
Seaside 
Japan, late 1910s 
Hanging scroll; ink and color on silk 
Gift of Terry Welch, 2021 (2021-03-052)

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Chikuha was roughly contemporary with Hirai Baisen, another artist featured in this exhibition. A comparison of Chikuha’s Seaside with Baisen’s paintings from around the same time, such as Autumn, reveals both similarities and differences. Both artists experimented with layered washes of ink and colors, hallmarks of innovations in modern Japanese–style painting during the 1910s–1920s. In Baisen’s case, these experiments led him increasingly to color fields and abstraction. Chikuha, on the other hand, was primarily concerned with the effects of atmosphere on perception, in this case the saturated air of a rainy seaside scene. Washes of color soften the outlines of the far shore, leading upward to hazy mountains in the distance. The definition of the village buildings and fishing boats in the foreground, drawn freehand, provides an effective contrast to emphasize the lack of outlines for landscape. 
 
Chikuha’s career in many ways paralleled Baisen’s. Chikuha studied in Tokyo under leading advocates for the modernization of Japanese-style painting and, like Baisen, established his reputation through early success in the annual national exhibition. However, this was followed by a long period of frustration, until he eventually stopped submitting. He instead pursued political office, but unsuccessfully, leaving him deeply in debt.