Draft:○△□
| ○△□ | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Artist | Sengai |
| Year | between c. 1819–1828 |
| Medium | Ink on Washi |
| Dimensions | 28.4 cm × 48.1 cm (11.2 in × 18.9 in) |
| Location | Idemitsu Museum of Arts, Tokyo |
○△□ or The Universe in English is a Zenga by Sengai, speculated to be made between 1819 and 1828. The work is currently located in Idemitsu Museum of Arts. It is called "The most mysterious work left by Sengai" as the work can be taken in many ways due to its simplicity.
Description
[edit]The artwork consists of three shapes, "○"(circle),"△"(triangle), "□" (square) drawn with ink. The square on the left is drawn in the lightest color, while the circle on the right is drawn in the darkest color. The work is 28.4 cm tall, and is 48.1cm wide.
On the left of the work, the rakkan of Sengai and the kanji letters "扶桑最初禅窟" are written. The letters mention the Shofuku-ji in Hakata, where Sengai was the chief priest. Works by Sengai usually has a poem with it, which is important when analyzing his works, although ○△□ doesn't have it.
The work is estimated to be made somewhere between 1819 and 1828 as the work has a stamp Sengai used in his 70s. The work is currently located in Idemitsu Museum of Arts in Tokyo.
Name
[edit]The work is usually called "○△□", due to the rakkan being located on the left. However, it is speculated that the shapes were drawn from the left due to the darkness of the ink, which raised concerns whether the work should be called "○△□" due to some people wanting to call the work "□△○"to respect the order of shapes. The work is called "The Universe" in English due to one of the main analysis of the work by D. T. Suzuki interpreting the subject of it as space from Sengai's view.
Analysis
[edit]References
[edit]Bibliography
[edit]- Suzuki, Daisetsu (March 19, 2004). 仙厓の書画 [Works of Sengai] (in Japanese). Iwanami Shoten, Publishers. ISBN 9784000236423.
- 八波, 浩一 (March 1, 2015). 仙厓の禅画―ユーモアに包まれたメッセージ [Zengas of Sengai:messages coated in humor] (in Japanese). 竹林舎. ISBN 9784902084627.