The Legend of The Japanese Painting Kawabata Ryushi and Painters of The Tokyo Painting Circle

Kawabata Ryushi (1885-1966) originally studied Western painting, but later turned to Japanese painting, and painted works based on the free and bold ideas of the Japan Art Institute (Inten). After withdrawing from Inten, he established the art circle Seiryu-sha in the following year by himself. Pursuing an art style to view works at exhibitions, not to enjoy them hanging on the wall of toko-no-ma at home, he developed his own art world with mighty brush strokes and rich colors.
This year, the 140th anniversary of Ryushi’s birth, we will hold a special exhibition to display all eight of his works that the museum houses, as well as works by other master painters who surrounded Ryushi and flourished in the Tokyo painting circle. These include Yasuda Yukihiko and Maeda Seison, who were members of the Japan Art Institute, Ochiai Rofu, who participated in Seiryu-sha, and Yokoyama Taikan and Kawai Gyokudo, who held the “Three-Painter Exhibition” with Ryushi, going beyond the different circles. We hope that you will enjoy numerous masterpieces from the modern Tokyo painting circle.