Hanshan and Shide

Kenkō Shōkei 賢江祥啓

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The eighth-century Chinese figures Hanshan and Shide (Kanzan and Jittoku, in Japanese) were Chan (Zen) Buddhist monks who held low-level positions at Guoqingsi, a temple on China’s sacred Mount Tiantai. Hanshan was a reclusive monk-poet, while Shide, his constant companion, is often shown carrying a broom, indicating his role as the temple’s custodian. This beloved pair of eccentric figures came to represent an iconoclastic aspect of Zen monastic practice and is among the most popular figural subjects in Japanese painting. This image of the monks shows them side by side, with Shide in front, hands held behind his back, while Hanshan behind him points to the sky and casts a knowing glance to his companion. Compositions like this one were derived from paintings held in Japanese collections that were believed to have been created by the Chinese Zen monk-painter Muqi 牧谿 (active ca. 1250–80). They proliferated in sixteenth-century eastern Japan, where they were frequently painted by followers of the master monk-painter Kenkō Shōkei 賢江祥啓 (active ca. 1478–ca. 1523). The present work is impressed with a seal reading Keison, a particularly prolific follower of Shōkei, but the seal has been determined to be forged.

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