The Art World's Genealogy: Respect for Creative Predecessors - Core Kyoto

A globally beloved part of Japanese culture uses dynamic line work to create vivid characters, movement, and scenery. One of manga's roots can be traced back about 800 years to illustrated scrolls rendered in ink. The use of lines is characteristic of traditional Japanese painting. It reflects a sensibility different from that of Western painting, which often renders subjects through perspective and shading. The blend of bold and delicate strokes, the color gradation, the poetry of negative space. Japanese painting was refined primarily in Kyoto, which flourished as the capital for centuries. An apprentice-based community of painters referred to as the Kyoto art world shaped generations of artists who left their mark on art history from the late 19th into the 20th century. That artistic lineage continues today in various forms, including nihonga, the term adopted in the late 19th century for Japanese-style painting using mineral pigments or ink on washi paper and silk. Some artists with roots in nihonga explore contemporary art and some take on manga. Korn Kyoto unravels the essence of Kyoto's art through the activities and works of contemporary artists. Mitan is a prestigious art association in Japan. Boasting a long history, it is one of the leading influences in the traditional art world. The community of painters itself is called the art world. From the early modern through the modern period, strong bonds were formed between master and apprentice. A genealogy of nihonga painters evolved singularly within Kyoto. Takeuchi Seho was central to the Kyoto art world. He expanded the expressive possibilities of nihonga by combining the style's tradition of meticulously sketching from life with elements of western painting. His protege, Uemura Shouen, is known for her delicate brushwork in paintings of beautiful women, a genre known as bijinga. Nishimura Go-un, another of Takeuchi's proteges, was a highly acclaimed artist who perfected the depiction of animals. He was instrumental in nurturing budding artists and left a lasting influence on the art world. Nihonga artist Fukuda Kiharu attends the 2026 Nippon Awards ceremony. This year she is receiving an encouragement award. In 2023, she received a special prize for her submission to the Nippon competition. This is Fukuda's award-winning work. The painting is an homage to Yorimoto Keiko, an artist who belonged to the Kyoto art world lineage. Inspired by Uemura Shouen, Fukuda carries the bijinga tradition forward with a modern flair. She continues to place nihonga's long-valued tradition of sketching from life at the core of her artistic practice. After sketching her subject in person, she uses that drawing as a base to create her artwork. She places tracing paper over the sketch and traces it in pencil. She then transfers the drawing, again in pencil, onto a canvas of washi, the traditional paper used in nihonga. From here she begins the key process of applying sumi ink with a brush. Nihonga could be described as the art of line work. Lines are a crucial element that transcends outlining. They confer vitality to the subject and influence the overall impression of the work. Fukuda uses pigments created by grinding and dissolving natural minerals and stones. She adds multiple layers of thinly diluted paint. Every April, Gion comes alive with a Miyako Odori performance of traditional Kyoto style dance by Maiko and Geiko. Fukuda created the artwork for the 2026 poster, her first time doing this for this event. The Miyako Odori has proudly heralded spring in Kyoto for more than 150 years. Painters from the local art world have historically created original artwork for the poster. Involvement in artistic work for Gion, an entertainment district that values tradition and prestige, has long been considered an honor by painters. Fukuda studied nihonga at the Kyoto City University of Arts. The university traces its origins to Japan's first public art academy, founded in 1880. It has produced many outstanding painters who have made significant contributions to the Kyoto art world. Now an established artist still visits her alma mater when she has an opportunity. On this day, she has arranged a workshop on woven silk used as canvases for a group of Kyoto artists. A silk canvas weaver explains his craft. Kawashima Wataru, Fukuda's mentor, is also a nihonga artist. Welcoming his protege's enthusiasm, he makes his classroom available on weekends to accommodate joint study. The close ties that once united the local art world have largely faded, which is why Kawashima emphasizes the importance of in-person activities and discussion. A serialized manga depicts aspiring young Kyoto artists of the early 20th century. The creator, Kawano Sayako, studied nihonga at the Kyoto City University of Arts. She also publishes a manga on the website of a major newspaper that introduces nihonga painters. During her student days, Kawano was overwhelmed with assignments and lost the motivation to paint. She turned to books about the early members of the Kyoto art world. Later, she adapted anecdotes about prominent painters into her favorite manga style, compiling them into a self-published booklet. A publisher saw the booklet and decided to release it as a book. Now, art museum shops across the country stock volumes as a reliable and accessible introduction to major nihonga artists. The Hakusa Sonsou Villa was home to Hashimoto Kansetsu, a prominent figure in the Kyoto art world for the latter half of his life. He designed the gardens and architecture himself. His aesthetic sensibilities are reflected throughout. At age 20, he apprenticed under Takeuchi Seho, already a major figure in the Kyoto art world. Hashimoto Kansetsu painted across multiple genres, from historical scenes and landscapes, to animals, before passing away in 1945, several months before World War II ended. An already included Hashimoto in her ongoing manga series, visits his villa to further understand him. She is greeted by Hashimoto's great-grandson, Shinji. A leading authority on Kansetsu's artistic career, he generously supports Kawano's own artistic journey. At the adjacent museum, a work that Shinji has identified as Hashimoto's final work was being publicly displayed for the first time. This work was only discovered in 2025. A few days after her visit, Kawano creates a manga based on Hashimoto's final work. The more she learns about her artistic predecessors, and the more she draws, the deeper her reverence grows. A Kyoto art museum held a nihonga exhibition in 2026, featuring avant-garde nihonga created in the city between 1948 and 1970. The exhibit focuses on innovative artists and their works that emerged after World War II. Hallmark elements of nihonga, such as sumi ink, mineral pigments, and negative space, are reinterpreted within these works in new ways. After the war, young painters in Kyoto formed groups, challenging traditional Japanese painting, questioning its framework, and exploring new forms of expression. Curator Mori Mitsuhiko planned the exhibition. Yamamoto Yuukyo was influenced by avant-garde nihonga. After studying nihonga in Kyoto, he has focused solely on contemporary art. He uses one-yen coins with humor and irony, commenting on modern society through themes such as price and value. Yamamoto incorporates motifs from the work of Takeuchi Seho into his own paintings. He laid out 4,050 one-yen coins and traced them onto traditional washi. His self-portrait is titled 63-yen artist. In this piece, he applied gold leaf, a material favored in nihonga, onto a blue construction tarp to depict Mount Fuji. Three-dimensional works were also included in the nihonga avant-garde exhibition. This sculpture, far removed from the nihonga style, was completed by Nomura Hisayuki at age 34. Now, 60 years later, he is still creating. Intrigued by this living witness to the avant-garde era, Yamamoto visited Nomura's studio for the first time. Was there a reason why you decided to work as a group, not just as an individual? Yamamoto decided to arrange a group show of his own to coincide with the avant-garde nihonga exhibition. His theme was a contemporary response to artists who explored the nature of nihonga in the post-war years. Yamamoto arranged for seven other independent artists to join him for rotating solo exhibitions in a single venue. Each had studied nihonga and gained a solid grounding in the genre. The event sought to reconnect artists in an era when personal connections are said to be disappearing. At the end of the exhibition, all eight artists collaborated on a joint installation at the gallery. This formed their collective homage to avant-garde nihonga. The Kyoto Art World's artistic genealogy, rooted in respect for predecessors, and learning from the past, ensures that its legacy will be passed on to future generations.