Gathering of Sennin - Pair

The Chinese mythology of the Xian is seen in Japan as a classic model for the Japanese paintings of Sennin. Sennin are holy men who live in harmony with nature, they are friends and companions of wild creatures because of their spiritual core of harmony with the universe. There is a book in the Edo Period that talks about five hundred sennin but for most people, there are eight that are popular and significant. In one of the screens, we see a sennin with his dragon rising into the heavens. The other sennin with various creatures, real and mythological, are shown in various poses created with the spontaneous and brilliant brushwork of Shohaku. The brushwork is similar to the flights of line and bursts of ink explosions, creating an expressive movement in negative space.

Paintings by this artist of similar subject matter are in the collection of the Kyoto National Museum, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, Indianapolis Museum of Art, Brooklyn Museum of Art, and the Tokyo National Museum.

神仙的聚会。Soga Shohaku (曾我翔白)。江户（约1760）。水墨纸本屏风六摺一对。质良。作者是日本画史上的知名画家。作品收藏于京都国立博物馆、波士顿美术博物馆、印第安纳波利斯艺术博物馆和布鲁克林艺术博物馆等处。