Eight Views of Xiao-Xiang

Sesson Shūkei’s ‘Eight Views of Xiao-Xiang’ is a handscroll from the 1500s. Ink on paper. Muromachi period, Japan.

The handscroll format allows for a continuous narrative. Crafted with ink, it reflects the Zen influence in Japanese painting.

Sesson Shūkei was a disinherited member of the Satake clan. He became a Zen monk and a master of ink painting.

Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio, https://clevelandart.org/art/1979.77