Gyoshū Hayami
Biography. Gyoshū was born in the plebeian downtown district of Asakusa in Tokyo. He studied traditional painting techniques as an apprentice to Matsumoto Fuko from the age of 15. When he was 17, his talent was recognized by Shikō Imamura, who invited him to join the "Kojikai" circle of leading young artists. With the revival of the Japan Fine Arts Academy ("Nihon Bijutsuin"), Gyoshū became a founding member. He worked in many schools of painting, including "Yamato-e, Rinpa" and "Bunjinga," with his style evolving gradually towards a detailed realism influenced also by his studies of Chinese paintings  from the Song dynasty and the Yuan dynasty. His later works evolved further towards Symbolism. In 1914, Gyoshū formed a group called "Sekiyokai" to study new styles of Japanese painting. He had a leg amputated after being hit by a train in 1919, but the incident did not affect his artistic output. He devoted himself to creation, submitting numerous works to the "Inten" Exhibition, as well as touring Europe in 1930. His flower and bird drawings in India ink painting style and his portraits were especially well received by art critics. His most famous work, dates from 1925. It was  the first art work of the Shōwa period to be accorded the status of Important Cultural Property (ICP) by the Japanese government's Agency for Cultural Affairs. Gyoshū died suddenly from typhoid fever in 1935 at the age of 40. Over 104 of his paintings were collected by the Yamatane Museum in Tokyo. One of Gyoshū's works, "Dance of Flames", was selected as the subject of a commemorative postage stamp as part of the Japanese government's Modern Art Series in 1979. In the year 1994, Gyoshū himself was the subject of a commemorative postage stamp under the Cultural  Leaders Series by Japan Post. He was influenced by Ryusei Kishida and painted a realistic style. The concept of the picture floated seeing the moth which crowded in the bonfire, the moth was caught many times, and it observed it. The designed flame is said to be an expression of Hayami Gyoshu's own thought and spiritual symbolism. This work was created in 1912. This work is attached to the depiction of textures such as kimono and tatami mats and shows a realistic tendency in the Taisho period. The model was a maiko named Kimie and was completed in two  years. This work was designated as an Important Cultural Property in 1977. This is an old camellia tree of Jizoin in Kita-ku, Kyoto City. The background of the painting was sprinkled with fine gold powder using a technique called scattering. External links. https://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/488502 https://shae-bear.com/archives/7987