Matsumura Keibun | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 1779 |
| Died | May 25, 1843 (aged 63–64) |
| Occupation | Painter |
Matsumura Keibun (Japanese: 松村 景文) (1779, Kyōto - 25 May 1843, Kyōto) was a Japanese painter.
His father died when he was two years old.[1] He was younger half-brother to Matsumura Goshun,[2][3][4] founder of the Shijō school, and received his first art lessons from him. He exhibited his works as early as 1796, under the auspices of Minagawa Kein, a showing which included calligraphy. Keibun inherited Goshun's studio when he died in 1811.[1] By 1813, he was listed in a directory of Kyōto's most notable citizens.
In 1818, for the seventh anniversary of his half-brother's death, he staged an exhibition of his works. In 1829, he painted a group of birds on the ceiling inside of the "Naginata-Hoko" (長刀鉾; roughly, Long Sword Halberd), one of the floats for the Gion Matsuri (festival), which is still in use today.
In 1830, he published an illustrated book; "Go Keibun gafu" (呉景文画譜, Keibun's Art of Painting), which was a significant contribution to establishing Goshun's style. He also served as Chief Priest at the Myōhō-in, a Tendai temple in Kyōto which was usually assigned to an Imperial prince. After his death, he was initially interred at the Daitsū-ji, an Ōtani-ha temple, but was later moved to the Konpuku-ji, a more prestigious Zen temple.
His style is similar to Goshun's, but somewhat lighter and what, in Western art, would be called manneristic. His best known works are a set of fusumas (sliding doors) in Myōhō–ji, a Nichiren temple, which are called Shiki kōsaku-zu (四季耕作図; roughly, "Cultivation in the Four Seasons"). He also specialized in paintings of birds and flowers.[3]
His work is kept in several museums, including the British Museum,[2] the Seattle Art Museum,[5] the Birmingham Museum of Art,[6] the Metropolitan Museum of Art,[7] the Portland Art Museum,[8] the Brooklyn Museum,[9] the Tokyo Fuji Art Museum,[10] the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston,[11] the Indianapolis Museum of Art,[12] the Minneapolis Institute of Art,[13] the University of Michigan Museum of Art,[14] and the Honolulu Museum of Art.[3]
