Born: 1754
Died: 1799
Rosetsu was a Maruyama painter. He was born and raised in the family of a low ranking samurai of the Yodo clan in Yamashiro. An intimate friend of Minagawa Kien, Rosetsu was an eccentric and violent character. He was one of the best of Okyo's pupils and in many ways one of his most remarkable followers, but was expelled from Okyo's studio and eventually developed his own style. In 1787 Rostesu toured Wakayama to paint "fusuma" in various temples there-work that shows his individual style, free from Okyo's influence. An extraordinarily versatile artist, at times he was close to the suibaku style; at others he borrowed themes from Ukiyo-e masters, painting famous "bijin".
He was also fond of animal subjects. He often combined bold composition of the Rimpa school with the humor of "zenga". Rosetsu frequently used a flat brush, or he held his brush in a slanting position, using different tones of ink in the same broad stroke. Occasionally he worked in a sort of western technique called doro-e, utilizing a mushy, thick paint mixed with Chinese white.
- from A Dictionary of Japanese Artists (1976), by Laurance P. Roberts