This rare and important work is one of only a handful of Buddhist paintings by Tawaraya Sōtatsu, one of the founders of the Rinpa School of painting, known for its decorative patterns and bright colors. His depiction of this iconic subject—the Chinese monks Kanzan and Jittoku asleep alongside the Zen Master Bukan and his pet tiger—reflects the influ­ence of this decorative style in the soft treatment of the tiger’s fur and the subtle distortions of Bukan’s side profile. The size of this painting and the accom­panying artist’s seal may indicate that it was once part of a set of Buddhist subjects, possibly mounted on a folding screen.

—Bradley Bailey