THE SUNSET OF HEIAN-KYO Print

The Heian period, which began in the late eighth century. The capital, Heiankyo, is an ancient Japanese city surrounded by four walls called Tsukiji Fence, with a rectangle approximately 5.2 km from north to south and approximately 4.5 km from east to west. It is said that Heiankyo chose the place where the land on each side is considered to be the best, based on the Chinese concept of feng shui, which is called Shijin-so-o, and decided the capital. Shijin-so-o is a place where all the conditions of the gods and animals that correspond to the directions of the east, west, north, and south, respectively, are arranged. It is said that the place is the most keenly and topnotch. The divine beast symbolizing each direction is the east: Qinglong, West: Byakko, South: Suzaku, North: Known as Genbu, the place surrounded by those gods was called Ryuketsu and it was believed that dragons lived there. When the Four Gods of God and Beast are applied to the actual topography, Seiryu represents running water, Byakko represents the great road, Suzaku represents lakes and marshes, and Genbu represents hills. Where was the actual place, including the four topographies, the running water (east): Kamo-gawa River and Omichi (west): Sanin-do Road (there are several theories depending on the literature), Lake (south): Ogura-ike Pond At that time, there was a large pond to the south of Heian-kyo (the ancient capital of Japan in current Kyoto), and a hill to the north: It was surrounded by Mt. Funaoka. On the north side of Heian-kyo is the Daidairi (where the government of the country is carried out), and from the south side of the Daidairi toward the south, a large road called Suzaku-oji Street, which is now the main street, runs through the center of the capital to the Rajo-mon Gate at the southernmost point of the Kyoto City. On the sides of the Rajo-mon Gate were Sai-ji Temple and To-ji Temple, respectively. Next, I would like to mention the historical background of the Heian period, which is the background to the theme of my work. In the Heian period, after the absorption of Tang culture, which had been practiced since before the Nara period (the abolition of Japanese envoys to Tang China), the Heian-kyo (the ancient capital of Japan) in Kyoto, the Emperor, the nobles and people flourished in the center of the Heian period, and Japanese cultural expressions, which represented the sensitivity, delicacy and Japanese spirit of the Tang culture, emerged. The Japanese style of delicate and delicate sensibilities and feelings are sought for more Japanese-style expressions, such as gorgeous court decorations, utaawase, gagaku, Juni-hitoe, Sho and ryuteki, and the sound of koto sounds around them, and the cherry blossoms in spring and full bloom, the long months of autumn and the long months of the year, playing the biwa, and the kana characters develop, and the heart of men and women are sung. It's been realized through the field. In the field of painting, it was around this time that the expression changed from the karae-like expression, which had been strongly influenced by the Tang Dynasty, to the soft, gentle picture of the way the Japanese feel more reflecting the Japanese love for the four seasons and the climate. Since then, Japanese culture has moved from Kamakura to Muromachi to the Sengoku period (period of warring states), leading to the emergence of painters such as Sotatsu TAWARAYA, Korin OGATA, and the Kano School from the Momoyama to the Edo period, as well as to Ukiyoe and Hokusai. After the isolation period, Japanese ukiyo-e went to Europe and inspired the impressionist painters of that time, and Japonism culture became popular for a lifetime. From that perspective, I believe that the most exposed form of various Japanese styles that have been handed down to the present in Japan is the Heian period, which began at the end of the eighth century. Around the beginning of the 8th century, Heijo-kyo, the capital of Changan (China), which was said to have been prosperous enough to surpass the Roman Empire at that time. From the perspective of the center of continental culture at that time, which flourished around Heijo-kyo, Japan (Wakoku) was recognized as a small island country that existed at the very end of the East, and separated from the continent from the sea (the East China Sea). But to reach that little island country, as a country so mysterious, as to be so close to it that a dragon is said to protect it, as it is wrapped in the veil of mist, it was a place of such a feeling of awe and longing, in the heart of the people of the mainland culture, and always in the heart of it, as though it were surrounded by mystery. I wonder what the people of continental culture at that time, or the people of Western European society, when they heard about Japan, thought about and imagined in their heads. And how did people who lived in Heian-kyo, the capital of Japan, express and live their minds? I chanted such thoughts into a picture. A Japanese heart cultivated since ancient times. Live where a man lives. If you rid yourself of the ogre, you are not there either. There is no capital without men. It is said that there are people and there are ogres. Both men, demons, and the capital are inseparable. To love the city is to love the people and to love the ogres. : HEIAN-KYO is capital of Heian period in Japan. The story is A.D.794-A.D.1192 This is Heian capital in Heian Period.the capital was moved to present-day Kyoto,in the 794 years. At the end of the eighth century, the capital was moved to present-day Kyoto. The Heian period designates a span of roughly 400 years until the 12th century. In the cultural sphere, Japan was able to move away from its reliance on imitating and assimilating Tan culture and proceed to forge a culture hat incorporated a distinct Japanese sprit and sensitivity. Due to the development and spread of hiragana and katakana, world-renowned literary works such as the Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu and Makura no Soshi by Seishonagon were created during this period. - 平安京は、平安時代の日本の首都です。 8世紀後半からはじまった平安時代。 その都(首都)である平安京は、南北およそ5.2km、東西およそ4.5kmの矩形で、築地塀という壁に四方を囲まれた日本の古代都市です。 平安京は、四神相応という中国の風水の考え方に基づき、四方の土地の気が最も良いとされる場所を選び、都を定めたと言われています。 四神相応とは、東西南北の方位に対応する神獣がそれぞれ存在し、その神獣を象徴する条件の地形がすべてそろった場所。その場所こそ、もっとも氣が良く地勢に優れているところとされています。 それぞれの方位を象徴する神獣とは、東：青竜、西：白虎、南：朱雀、北：玄武、といわれ、それらの神に囲まれた場所を、龍穴と呼び、そこには龍が棲むとも信じられていました。 四神相応の神獣を、実際の地勢にあてはめると、青竜は流水、白虎は大道、朱雀は湖沼、玄武は丘陵を象徴します。 その、四つの地勢を含んだ実際の場所がどこであったのかというと、流水(東)：鴨川、大道(西)：山陰道(文献により若干の諸説あり)、湖沼(南)：巨椋池(おぐらいけ；当時は、平安京の南の方、現在の宇治・伏見辺りに大きな池がありました)、丘陵(北)：船岡山に囲まれた場所でした。 平安京の北側には、大内裏(国の政を執り行うところ)があり、大内裏の南側から南方向へ向かって、朱雀大路という、今で言うメインストリートに当たる大きな道路が、京の都の最南端にある羅城門まで、都の中心を貫いていました。 羅城門の両脇には、それぞれ西寺と東寺がありました。 次に、作品テーマの背景となっている、平安時代の時代背景について触れたいと思います。 平安時代は、奈良時代以前から行われていた唐文化の吸収を終え(遣唐使の廃止)、京の都平安京を中心に、帝と貴族、そして人々の間に、日本独自の文化が花開き、それまでの唐文化を模した文化様式から、より日本人の感性や繊細さ、日本の心を表した、日本らしい文化表現が姿を現した時代です。 絢爛雅な宮廷装飾、歌合せ、雅楽、十二単、笙や竜笛に琴の音が辺りに響き、春満開の桜や秋の長月を愛で、歌に詠み、琵琶を弾き、かな文字が発達し、男女の心の内を歌にしたためやり取りを通わすなど、日本独自の繊細で細やかな感性・感情が、より日本人らしい表現を求めて、様々な分野を通じて体現されていきました。 絵の分野においても、それまで唐の影響を強く受けていた唐絵(からえ)的表現から、日本人が日本の四季や風土を愛でる心をより反映した、柔らかく優しい風合いのやまと絵へと、表現を変化させたのも、この頃でした。 それ以降、日本文化は歴史の移り変わりと共に、鎌倉・室町と経て、戦国時代へ向かい、桃山～江戸時代に活躍した絵師俵谷宗達や尾形光琳、そして狩野派の出現、さらに浮世絵、北斎(たち)へと連なります。 そして、鎖国時代を経て日本の浮世絵がヨーロッパに渡り、当時の印象派の画家たちにインスピレーションを与え、ジャポニズム文化が一代流行しました。 そのような視点で俯瞰してみたときに、日本において現在まで伝えられている様々な日本様式の一番の発露のもとが、8世紀終わりから始まった、平安時代にあると私は考えています。 8世紀初めごろ、当時はあのローマ帝国を凌ぐと言われるほどの繁栄を見せていた長安(中国)の都、平城京。 その平城京を中心に栄えた、当時の大陸文化中心の視点で見てみると、同時期の日本(倭国) は、東洋の一番端、しかも大陸から海(東シナ海)を隔てて存在する、ほんの小さな島国という認識でした。 しかし、その小さな島国へ行くには、間を龍が守っている、と言われるほど、簡単には近づくことができない、まるで霧のベールに包まれているかのような、とてもミステリアスな島国として、大陸文化の人々の興味をどことなく、そしていつも心のどこかで、まるで神秘に包まれたものに対していだく畏敬の念・憧れのような、そのような情景感を抱かせるところだったのです。 当時の大陸文化の人々が、あるいは西欧社会の人々が、日本と聞いてどのようなところを頭の中に思い浮かべ、想像したのだろうか。 そして、日本の都平安京に住む人々は、どのような想いで、自分たちの心を表現し、暮らしていたのだろうか。そのような想いにこころを馳せて、絵に表現しました。 太古の古より、日本で培われた、和の心。 人の住むところに 鬼も住みて。 鬼を排せば 人もまたそこにはあらず。 人あらずは都もあらず。 都あるは、人ありにて、鬼もまたあるということ。 人も 鬼も 都も、どちらも分かち難く 不可分なものなりて。 都を愛するは、人を愛し、鬼を愛することなり。

Print:Giclee on Fine Art Paper

Size:9 W x 12 H x 0.1 D in

Size with Frame:14.25 W x 17.25 H x 1.2 D in

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