Study on the techniques and expression of UEMURA Shoen especially on her portraying beautiful women

2019 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 16K02258
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Aesthetics and studies on art
• Research Institution: Independent Administrative Institution National Institutes for Cultural Heritage Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties
• Principal Investigator: Okawara Noriko 独立行政法人国立文化財機構東京文化財研究所, 文化遺産国際協力センター, 客員研究員 (80401503)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 宮廻 正明 東京藝術大学, 学内共同利用施設等, 教授 (40272645) ; 高林 弘実 京都市立芸術大学, 美術学部/美術研究科, 准教授 (70443900)
• Project Period (FY): 2016-04-01 – 2020-03-31
• Keywords: 日本画 / 技法 / 美人画

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The purpose of this study was to clarify the characteristics of the technique and expression of Japanese painter Uemura Shoen, who was active during the Meiji and Showa eras, through a scientific analysis of the works and a survey of his sketches and autobiography.
When the two works of this painting were analyzed by fluorescent X-ray diffraction, infrared photography, and microscopic photography, both old pigments in Japanese paintings and pigments newly used after the Meiji era were detected. It was also found that, unlike the description in the literature, it was colored only on the silk surface. In terms of expression, there was a deliberate difference in technique between the human body and other parts of the same screen. In the analysis of miniatures, which is the origin of the artist, we classified colors and motifs and made them into electronic books.

Free Research Field

絵画技法

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

上村松園の技法と表現の特徴は、モチーフの写生に基づきつつ、松園自身が感じた美しさに焦点をあて、物理的に無理のない一般的な技法を独自に組み合わせて表現したことにあった。それが明治から昭和にかけて数多く描かれた美人画の中で、現在も時代に埋もれない強さの基盤となっていると結論づける。また電子書籍化では所蔵館と協力して調査と公開を行うモデルケースとして、現代的な情報共有方法を提示できたと考える。