Small Retreat in the Mountains
1927
Kodôjin's paintings continued the literati appreciation of landscape as the appropriate allusion for the ideal life. Here massive cliffs frame the view of a small village and a towering distant peak; in the foreground a scholar sweeps the path before a simple hut. The scholar is separated from village life by a barrier of trees, and the remote location and intervening distance are emphasized by a band of clouds.
Much like this scholar-hermit set apart from village life, Kodôjin adamantly maintained his independence from the art establishment that had developed during the Taishô period (1912-1926).
Ink on silk
85 1/8 x 22 3/8 in. (216.2 x 56.8 cm)
Gift of Griffith and Patricia Way, in honor of the 75th Anniversary of the Seattle Art Museum
2010.41.49
Photo: Eduardo Calderon
