Ancient Oak, Everlasting Spring (古柏, 長春) by NAKABAYASHI CHIKUTŌ, MORIKAWA CHIKUSŌ, AND ŌKURA RITSUZAN 

Edo period (1615-1868), early 19th century

This kakejiku (掛 け 軸, hanging scroll) is a rare gassaku (合 作, collaborative painting) executed by three of the most influential nanga (南 画, literati painting) masters of the early 19th century. This work’s composition centers on a gnarled, ancient oak tree by Nakabayashi Chikutō (1776–1853), whose masterful use of "mi dots" (a classic literati technique of layered ink dabs) gives the foliage a dense, rhythmic vitality. The tree emerges from a rugged outcrop of rocks sketched by Ōkura Ritsuzan (1785–1850) in the traditional Chinese scholar-painting style. Softening the austerity of the stone and timber is a blossoming wild rosebush by Morikawa Chikusō (1763–1830), rendered in an elegant technique that eschews harsh outlines in favor of tonal washes.

This work is a testament to the intellectual camaraderie of the bunjinga (文 人 画, literati) circles in Kyoto and Nagoya. An inscription at the top right, recorded by the scholar Raishu, titles the piece Kohaku Chōshun (古 柏, 長 春, Ancient Oak, Everlasting Spring) and explicitly credits each artist’s contribution.

Stylistic analysis suggests a sophisticated sequence of execution: Chikutō likely established the light-grey skeletal form of the oak, followed by Ritsuzan’s foundational rocks and Chikusō’s floral accents, before Chikutō returned to the silk with wetter, darker ink to finalize the tree's powerful silhouette. Because Morikawa Chikusō passed away in 1830, the scroll is firmly dated to the first three decades of the 19th century, likely the mid-1820s.

Executed entirely in sumi ink on paper, the painting prioritizes the expressive quality of the brushstroke over decorative color, adhering to the high ideals of the scholar-amateur tradition. The scroll has been expertly preserved in a new brocade silk mount and is stored in a new box with a protective outer cardboard box. Unsigned but marked with three seals and an inscription, this collaboration captures a specific moment of artistic harmony, where three distinct hands merged to create a singular, balanced vision of nature’s endurance and renewal.

The inscription on the top right-hand corner reads:

古柏, 長春 / Ko Haku Chō Shun / Ancient Oak, Everlasting Spring

竹 洞 製 柏、笠 山 画 石、竹 窓 描 薔 薇 / Chiku Tō Sei Haku, Ryū Zan Ga Ishi, Chiku Sō Byo Shō Bi / Chikutō painted oak, Ryūzan sketched rocks, Chikusō drew rosebush

雷首織 / Rai Shu Shiki / Written by Raishu

NAKABAYASHI CHIKUTŌ 中林竹洞 (1776–1853)

A leading Japanese nanga painter, renowned for refined ink landscapes inspired by Chinese Yuan-dynasty masters, particularly Ni Zan, and for helping establish the theoretical foundations of literati painting in Japan. Trained through close study of imported Chinese paintings in Nagoya and later active in Kyoto’s literati circles, he combined painterly practice with scholarship, authoring influential treatises such as Gadō kongōsho and Chikutō garon. An important intellectual figure as well as an artist, Chikutō exemplifies the Edo-period ideal of the scholar-artist.

Chikutō was highly esteemed for his disciplined brushwork, subtle modulation of ink tones, and sophisticated command of classical Chinese compositional models, which he reinterpreted with clarity and restraint rather than overt virtuosity. His paintings were admired for their intellectual rigor as much as their visual elegance, earning him a reputation among contemporaries as a painter of exceptional cultivation and moral seriousness. By the late Edo period, he was recognized not only as one of the foremost nanga painters of his generation but also as an authoritative voice on painting theory, and his works were sought after by educated collectors who valued erudition, lineage, and connoisseurship.

His works are held in major international collections, including the Indianapolis Museum of Art, Harvard Art Museums, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Minneapolis Institute of Art, Ashmolean Museum, University of Michigan Museum of Art, and the Cleveland Museum of Art.

MORIKAWA CHIKUSŌ 森川竹窓 (1763– 1830)

Morikawa Chikusō (1763–December 16, 1830) was a distinguished Japanese calligrapher, painter, and seal engraver active in the mid- to late Edo period, celebrated above all for his mastery of classical calligraphy. Born in Toriya Village in Yamato Province, he later worked in Edo and Naniwa (Osaka), where he devoted himself to the close study and copying of ancient calligraphic models. Known by numerous art names (including Takemadō, Ryōō, and Ten’yō) Chikusō achieved wide renown for calligraphy that combined scholarly rigor with expressive refinement. He was also highly accomplished in seal carving and ink painting, particularly bamboo subjects rendered with controlled brushwork and literati sensibility. Texts containing his work are held in Waseda University’s collection, and the Ashmoleon.

ŌKURA RITSUZAN 大倉笠山 (1785–1850)

A Japanese painter active in the late Edo period, associated with the nanga tradition. A native of Yamashiro Province, he was trained in painting under Nakabayashi Chikutō, from whom he absorbed a disciplined approach to brushwork and composition grounded in Chinese literati models. He also studied poetry with the eminent scholar Rai San’yō, situating him firmly within the intellectual circles of Kyoto literati culture. Ritsuzan’s work reflects the synthesis of painting and poetry that defined nanga practice, emphasizing scholarly refinement and expressive restraint rather than decorative effect. His works are held in the MET, British Museum, and Smithsonian.