National Treasures & Important Cultural Properties
of National Institutes for Cultural Heritage, Japan

Sesson Shûkei (1504?-?) was born in the province of Hitachi (present-day north-eastern Ibaraki Prefecture) but left home at a young age to become a Buddhist monk. He lived in Aizu (present-day western Fukushima Prefecture), Kamakura, Odawara, and other locations before settling in his final years of life in Miharu, northern Japan. While at once retaining great admiration for his predecessor Sesshû (1420-1506?), this painter-priest immersed himself in the study of a broad variety of Chinese and Japanese paintings and pioneered the most individualistic style of any contemporary painter.
This set of paintings depicts the legendary Zhou-dynasty (c. 1100-256 B.C.) Chinese immortal Qin Gao, who, in order to keep a promised meeting with one of his disciples, appeared out of the depths of a magical lake riding a giant red carp. The distorted human figures, the lively delineations of the draped garments, and the rendition of the waves are distinctive elements of Sesson’s oeuvre.