Rinpa

琳派 / early 17th century– / Style / East Asian Painting

Gold and silver grounds, mineral pigment, simplified nature, empty space, repetition and tarashikomi run across its work, pulling painting, craft and calligraphy into one bold, flat composition.

Rinpa — Tawaraya Sōtatsu, Fūjin Raijin-zu byōbu (Wind and Thunder Gods), 17th century — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain — Tawaraya Sōtatsu, Fūjin Raijin-zu byōbu (Wind and Thunder Gods), 17th century — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain

Rinpa — Ogata Kōrin, Kakitsubata-zu byōbu (Irises), 18th century — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain — Ogata Kōrin, Kakitsubata-zu byōbu (Irises), 18th century — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain

Rinpa — Ogata Kōrin, Kōhakubai-zu byōbu (Red and White Plum Blossoms) — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain — Ogata Kōrin, Kōhakubai-zu byōbu (Red and White Plum Blossoms) — Wikimedia Commons / Public domain

At a glance

Visual cues

Gold and silver grounds
Boldly abbreviated nature
Repetition and emptiness
Tarashikomi pooling

Best used for

Luxury packaging for seasonal confectionery and sake, where the motif carries the season
Large flat decorative walls for restaurant and hotel interiors that hold the eye

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Dictionary entry

Type: Treat letters as part of the picture and scatter them across the void
Composition: Push the motif to one edge and leave the gold center empty
Material: Foil gold and silver, opaque mineral color, pooled tarashikomi bleeds
Caution: Assuming that flowers on gold make rinpa kills the tension that emptiness and abbreviation create. Check the literary quotation, calligraphy, craft media and the lineage of masters followed across generations.
Further study: Hon'ami Kōetsu / Tawaraya Sōtatsu / Ogata Kōrin / Kamisaka Sekka

Related entries

Sumi-e (水墨画)Same East Asian Painting lineage.Compare Rinpa and Sumi-e
Ukiyo-e (浮世絵)Shared effects: Calm.Compare Rinpa and Ukiyo-e

Cite this entry

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Link: https://indexstyle.org/styles/rinpa
Markdown: [Rinpa — IndexStyle](https://indexstyle.org/styles/rinpa)
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