Red and White Poppies

Tosa Mitsumochi

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The summer motif of red and white poppies arrayed across the gold-leaf surface of the screen is a decorative formula that developed during the seventeenth century and was taken up by various schools throughout the Edo period. An unusual feature of this painting is the pattern of family crests that decorates the lattice fence. In the lower right corner an inscription by Ogata Kōrin (1658–1716) attributes the work to the court painter Tosa Mitsumochi, who died a century before the celebrated Rinpa artist was born. The attribution, however, is speculative; based on its style, the work probably dates to the early seventeenth century. Nevertheless, the screen reveals the kind of court paintings that Kōrin, famous for formalized depictions of natural themes, had direct access to and would have studied.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art