Children Playing in Summer and Winter

Maruyama Ōshin Japanese

Not on view

Two groups of young children delight in the possibilities for adventure offered by a summer river and a winter snowfall. The boys of summer try their skill at ferrying one another about in a small boat, while the winter squad braves uneven footing to shepherd an ever-larger snowball across a sparkling white field. Inspired by a Chinese painting tradition of depicting imperial children at play in palace gardens, this pair of screens subverts and updates the genre with its sparse, graphic landscapes. The painter Ōshin was the third head of the Maruyama school, founded by Maruyama Ōkyō (1790–1838).

Children Playing in Summer and Winter, Maruyama Ōshin (Japanese, 1790–1838), Pair of six-panel folding screens; ink, color, and gold on paper, Japan

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Children Playing in Summer and Winter, Maruyama Ōshin (Japanese, 1790–1838), Pair of six-panel folding screens; ink, color, and gold on paper, Japan
Children Playing in Summer and Winter, Maruyama Ōshin (Japanese, 1790–1838), Pair of six-panel folding screens; ink, color, and gold on paper, Japan

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