Self-Portrait--Miyamoto+Musashi

(Image of Musashi's 'Self Portrait', http://www.shimada-museum.net/musashi-works-01.html ) Title:Self-Portrait Artist:Miyamoto Musashi Country of Origin:Japan Culture/Ethnicity: Japanese Date/period: c. 1640CE Size: **71.5 × 28.9cm** Museum accession number: None given. Current location and manner of display and provenance: Shimada Museum of Fine Arts
 * Self-Portrait, Miyamoto Musashi**
 * Identification**

This entry will serve to teach about Miyamoto Musashi, the culture from which he arose, and his typical expressions. By using his "Self-Portrait" as a case example, this page will show Musashi's styles and philosophies.

Description: The original portrait is located between two other original paintings by Miyamoto Musashi in the Shimada Museum of Fine Arts. Within the room there are other pieces of art created by Musashi, including a famous tsuba created for one of his swords. The original piece is somewhat yellowed around the actual figure of Musashi, which is situated towards the bottom right of the field, with negative space to the left and above the figure. The figure is wearing a red vest over white clothes carrying two swords, a long and short sword. Both swords are pointed down with the shorter in the left hand. This is reflective of the Niten Ichi Ryu style that Musashi himself invented. The scabbards for the two swords are placed in the belt of the figure both on the left hand side, closest to the observer. He is wearing a traditional male Japanese Kimono, loose white pants, shirt with a red vest/overcoat, and is barefoot. The figure himself is bald on the top with hair on the sides and back and wears a moustache. The shoulders of the figure are broad whereas the hands and feet are disproportionately small. The figure has a stern look as is also traditional in portraits of the warrior Samurai. The border around the piece is green patterned material hung between two rods above and below. The piece was done in colored ink on paper. This self-portrait was created to hang on a wall.

Historical Context: Miyamoto Musashi's Self Portrait reflects artistic characteristics of the Japanese Edo Period. In 1603 CE the central government of Japan had been controlled by the shoguns (hereditary commander in chiefs of the armed forces) of the Tokugawa family. The art of the Edo period reflected the successful policies of the shogunates, who ruled as a military dictator would. The shogunates were able to create a powerful centralized government in Japan and the stability of government led to a growth in Japanese economy, which eventually created a county in which art could thrive."This new era saw the growth of large cities, a money economy, the rise of literacy..."(pg. 184,Kampen-O'Riley) Initially the creativity of the artists was banned, but this oppression would come to be unenforceable as schools of art popped up all over Japan in response to the rest of the countries' growth. Artists were enabled to create tremendous expressions.

Common traits of painting at this time were decorative ornamented styles of subject matter and content. A wide spectrum of colors were used when available. Because these artists were living in a country with a thriving economic and cultural prosperity, they were able to study and form new techniques. One of these techniques was called tarashikomi, a technique in which ink would be applied to a wet area of a differently pigmented ink, creating almost a puddling effect. During this period of time in Japan, there was a sweeping movement to reflect upon, perfect, and come up with new ideas on old techniques in all facets of life. This school of thought was universal to the country at this time, and was seen in art, literature, even swordsmanship.

Miyamoto Musashi was widely acclaimed for his ink paintings (using brush and ink) and calligraphy. He worked primarily with inks, and his ink paintings were often either portraits or landscapes. The Japanese ink-brush style of painting that Mushashi used was a method of artistic expression that emerged from the Buddhist schools of calligraphy. Buddhist schools of thought had a large impression upon Musashi, as he was a Zen-Buddhist. A common trait that was specific to Musashi's paintings was that he was very economical with his brush strokes. Essentially, Musashi used less strokes to paint more images than typical artists of this time. He taught that in order to become a great swordsman, one had to master the art of painting and calligraphy. The strokes used to paint a picture, or to write calligraphy, were nearly the same used to wield a sword, using very fine motions in the hand and wrist.

Art was just a portion of Miyamoto's identity. He wrote several books, was a philosopher, was a master swordsman, artist, and warrior. One sweeping fact about Musashi that can be applied to all of his trades was his own personal philosophy that a "True Strategist" was someone who had mastered and perfected many facets of cultural life. ("The Book of Five Rings) This philosophy from which Musashi had chose to run his life is a direct reflection of the time and culture in which he lived. Because Japan at this time was a self-sufficient, prosperous nation, he was able to spend his life studying and critiquing so many of the arts. ("Art of the Edo Period") Mushashi interpreted the meaning of his life to becoming a 'jack of all trades', and spent his years becoming a culturally diverse expert of many arts. In his most famous book, the Book of Five Rings, he speaks on how to properly use strategy in every aspect of one's life. From the Farmer to the Gentleman warrior, everyone can apply his teachings on strategy to become a better person, the essence of Bushido.

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1) Kampen-O'Riley, Michael. Art Beyond the West (2nd Edition). Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2006. 2) Department of Asian Art. "Art of the Edo Period (1615–1868)". In //Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History//. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/edop/hd_edop.htm (October 2003) 3) Tarver, D. E., and Miyamoto Musashi. __The Book of Five Rings Miyamoto Musashi__. Lincoln: IUniverse, 2004. 4) Tokitsu, Kenji. //Miyamoto Musashi His Life and Writings//. Shambhala Publications, Inc. 2004.