(Attrib.) Kanō Motonobu’s ink painted scrolls of Sages and their servants

(Attrib.) Kanō Motonobu (狩野 元信)(aka Kohōgen [古法眼]) (1476–1559) —a member of the Kanō school of painting that his father, Kanō Masanobu, founded and which was highly influential for painters of the Edo period (1603–1868). The attribution of these scrolls to Kanō Motonobu is based on information given to me from the dealer from whom I purchased them. Note, however, that one of the key traditions of Oriental painting is to copy old masters and these unsigned scrolls may be from the circle of the artist rather than by his hand. Nevertheless I can see evidence that the dealer’s attribution may be correct (viz. the clear age of the paintings, the confidence of the strokes and the painting style). For those unfamiliar with this artist, Wikipedia offers a good account of his life and achievements; see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kan%C5%8D_Motonobu.

Two ink on grey paper hanging scrolls with bone rollers (one needing reattachment), each scroll showing a sage accompanied by a servant.

Size of each scroll (approx.): 250 x 63 cm.

Condition: the scrolls are in poor condition with abrasions, roll creases, significant wormholes, old restorations and a loose roller end. Ideally these very large and beautiful paintings should be restored because of their outstanding quality.

I am selling these poetically delicate early ink paintings executed with great economy and lightness of touch for a total cost of AU$804 for the pair (currently US$573.81/EUR508.05/GBP432.80 the time of this listing) including the storage box, postage and handling to anywhere in the world, but not (of course) any import duties/taxes imposed by some countries.

If you are interested in purchasing this pair of exceptionally beautiful paintings despite damages they have sadly sustained over the years, please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.