“Trees Encoiled in Vines of Ivy” (Yadorigi)

“Trees Encoiled in Vines of Ivy” (Yadorigi)

Tawaraya Sōtatsu

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This painting representing Chapter 49 was cut from a pair of screens featuring scenes from Genji. Kaoru, raised as Genji’s son, lies in bed, a screen shielding him from the evening wind in the hills of Uji. A maidservant piques his curiosity by mentioning a local beauty, Ukifune. The brilliant, richly applied pigments and stylized landscape detail are hallmarks of Tawaraya Sōtatsu’s studio.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

“Trees Encoiled in Vines of Ivy” (Yadorigi)“Trees Encoiled in Vines of Ivy” (Yadorigi)“Trees Encoiled in Vines of Ivy” (Yadorigi)“Trees Encoiled in Vines of Ivy” (Yadorigi)“Trees Encoiled in Vines of Ivy” (Yadorigi)

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.