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Sea God with Carp

	Object Type	18th Century Japanese Scroll
	Artist	Shohaku
	Period	Edo (18th century)
	Materials	Sumi on Paper
	Creation Date	ca.1775
	Dimensions	158 cm. x 87.7 cm. (62 1/4 in. x 34 1/2 in.)

Commentary

The wonderful fluid brushwork expresses itself perfectly; the thrusting arm and fist is made of flesh, yet the strokes on the shoulders, though seemingly made the same way, appear as cloth. It is all so spontaneously produced and yet carefully constructed that it cannot be a direct copy of another painting. Yet this is not Shohaku's typical style of painting. Notice in the rapid strokes of the fists and hanging of the robes, the interesting shapes that are outlined. Notice the life and vigor of the carp as well as the dead fish in the bucket. All these signs are of a master artist, and it might well be Shohaku himself except for the divergence of style. In this half of the pair of paintings, Shohaku is depicting the legend of the wise man who can bear the humility of crawling beneath the legs of a ridiculing oaf. This man later became one of the most famous intellects of China. - JDP