Description

Kiyokawa sits, ink brush in hand, before a fuzukue on which lies a fan he is inscribing. Known as a scholar and an exceptional writer, he wanted to "turn the realm upside down" and restore power to the emperor.

Thirty Great Loyalists of Early Modern Times

The eleven extant prints comprising the seemingly incomplete series Thirty Great Loyalists of Early Modern Times depict figures active in the mid/late Edo era and early Meiji era who displayed great loyalty to the Emperor and, thereby, the nation. Issued in 1942 when the war in the Pacific was raging, the patriotic theme of these prints was clear. Nine of the eleven extant prints portray a famous incident or anecdote in a Great Loyalist's life and two prints deal specifically with the 1860 assassination of the shōgunate's Chief Minister Ii Naosuke (1815-1860). Each print was issued in a folder which also contained a written commentary. 

Print Details

Artist Profile

Kawabune (Kawafune) Misao 川船水棹 (1887-1980) - a Japanese-style Tosa school painter, born in the Nihonbashi section of Tokyo. In 1904 he began to study Tosa school painting under Kobori Tomone  小堀鞆音 (1864-1931). In 1907 he joined the Kōjikai (dedicated to yamato-e painting) formed by Yasuda Yukihiko 安田靭彦 (1884-1978) and Isoda Chōshū 磯田長秋 (1880-1947). His painting was accepted into the government sponsored Bunten in 1915 and he went on to regularly participate in the Teiten and Shin Bunten exhibitions, making a name for himself as a master of historical painting.

Sources: http://kagedo.com/wordpress/g/kawafune-misao-1936-exhibition-painting-ravine-melting-snow-titled-pure-tone/ ; https://trc-deac.trc.co.jp/WJ11E0/WJJS06U/1220415100/1220415100100040/ht000350