Description

The eighteenth print appearing in Volume 1 of Gishi taikan, edited by Fukumoto Nichinan. 

Ōishi Yoshio stands in a garden of his home in rural Yamashina, southeast of Kyoto, where he has gone into seclusion. From there, he will contact the former retainers of the Lord of Akō, Asano Naganori, to plan their revenge.

In Section 66 of Genroku kaikyoroku, Fukumoto tell us that Ōishi received many offers to serve other lords in their domains, but that "he refused all of these invitations, and as a sign that he no longer had any hope in this world he bought a house in Yamashina, sought out land in the rice fields, and even brought carpenters and plasterers from Kyoto to build a detached retreat house. He also planted his favorite peonies in front of the house and brought his wife and children all the way from Toyooka, pretending that he was going to pass the reins of the family to Matsunojo [his first son later known as Ōishi Chikara] and that he was going to spend his last days as a landowning hermit, enjoying the beauty of flowers, birds, wind and moon."[1]

[1] my translation of section 66 of Genroku kaikyoroku (山科の隠栖諸侯の招聘と荒木重左衛門の返書内蔵助と直江山城守)  元禄快挙録（上） 

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Print Details

Artist Profile

Ishii Rinkyō 石井林響 (1884-1930) 

Ishii Rinkyō, birth name Ishii Kisaburō, was born in Chiba prefecture in 1884. He studied under Hashimoto Gahō 橋本雅邦 (1835-1908), a Kanō school painter and later became a follower of the nanga school. He was an exhibitor and prize winner at the government-sponsored Bunten and Teiten exhibitions.  After the reorganization of the Bunten into the Teiten, he objected to its strict selectivity and management and formed the Josuikai 如水会  (an art circle) together with Noda Kyūho 野田九浦 (1879-1971), Shimada Bokusen 島田墨仙 (1867-1943) and Ikeda Terukata 池田輝方 (1883-1921). The Josuikai dissolved after their first exhibition and Ishii again exhibited at the Teiten, being awarded the special selection at the 4th exhibition in 1922. He was chosen as a judge of the exhibition in 1924. He passed away suddenly at the age of 47 in 1930.