Scroll from a set of the Lotus Sutra (Hokekyō), Heian period, 12th century, Japan, handscroll; gold and silver on indigo-dyed paper, 10 1/16 in. x 33 ft., Metropolitan Museum of Art
A search for indigo dye brought me a glimpse of these stunning treasures. While indigo is common as a clothing dye and (often now synthetic) indigo is worn all around the world as a near religious love of blue jeans, these Buddhist works on indigo-dyed paper are anything but common.
Lotus Sutra
In the 11th century, many sponsors valued these higher class of sutra, written in gold and silver inks on indigo-dyed paper as an insurance of their own salvation. Salvation for some can be a rather expensive bartyr, evidently. Donations at times assumed monumental proportions: five thousand scrolls necessitated the importing of professional scribes and artists from Kyoto, and took 10 years to complete. The scrolls were dedicated the year of the donor’s death.
Despite the staggering volume of production, the quality of many of these scrolls is exquisite. The text is written in alternate lines of gold and silver ink, and the illuminations are evocative, almost ethereal, the deities engulfed in diaphanous silver clouds.
Since there were over five thousand scrolls commissioned, and it is only natural that they became repetitive, especially if the artists, assembled in specialized sutra workshops, were working under the pressure of a deadline – to be completed before the death of the patron. In this environment, artists lacked the leisure to be inventive, and images were reduced to stereotypes. The shortcuts of a mass-production system give these exquisite scrolls a remarkable sameness. – Navin Kumar Gallery
Unknown (Japanese) Anoku-Fu Sutra, from 1183 to 1185 gold and silver ink on indigo paperUnknown (Japanese) Anoku-Fu Sutra, from 1183 to 1185 gold and silver ink on indigo paperUnknown (Japanese) Anoku-Fu Sutra, from 1183 to 1185 gold and silver ink on indigo paperThe Buddhist Book of Illuminations (unknown date)
Other works on Indigo…
Qurʾan folio on blue parchment, North Africa or Near East 800–900AD (300 years before the Sutras above). Museum of Fine Arts, BostonLuohan with Fantastic Animals Gold and silver ink on indigo paper (unknown year) 10 1/4 x 7 1/4 in
Love Indigo?
You too can buy your way to eternal salvation by joining the Indigo Workshop March 7 & 14. We’ll know your spirit is saved by the blissful smile on your face, and the sight of your deep blue hands.
Usually when people draw, they draw a thing, and then that thing floats in a kind of nothing space called the “background.” But what would happen if you didn’t draw things? What would happen if instead of things you drew the space between things? What would it look like to draw the air or the …
Announcing the 2nd annual Seattle Artist League Portrait Awards! 1st Prize: $1,000 cash2nd Prize: $500 SAL Gift Certificate3rd Prize: $300 SAL Gift CertificateHonorable Mentions: $100 SAL Gift Certificates Guest judge: Catherine Lepp Call ends 3/1/2022 @ midnight PST The Seattle Artist League Portrait Awards aim to encourage artists to focus on and develop the theme of portraiture in their work. The …
My last V. Note proclaimed itself “the first of four posts highlighting black artists with professional careers in both painting and printmaking.” I had done an internet search for black artists, and found a Wiki page with a fantastic list of artists I could research. To narrow down the list, I looked for all the artists …
If you listen to NPR, you may have heard yesterday’s story on “Why Certain Poor Shepherds In Nativity Scenes Have Huge, Misshapen Throats.” According to retired surgeon Renzo Dionigi of the University of Insubria in Varese, Italy (NPR), goiters have been a sign of poverty and geographic location. The purpose of including goiters in paintings may have …
Silver, Gold on Indigo Paper
A search for indigo dye brought me a glimpse of these stunning treasures. While indigo is common as a clothing dye and (often now synthetic) indigo is worn all around the world as a near religious love of blue jeans, these Buddhist works on indigo-dyed paper are anything but common.
In the 11th century, many sponsors valued these higher class of sutra, written in gold and silver inks on indigo-dyed paper as an insurance of their own salvation. Salvation for some can be a rather expensive bartyr, evidently. Donations at times assumed monumental proportions: five thousand scrolls necessitated the importing of professional scribes and artists from Kyoto, and took 10 years to complete. The scrolls were dedicated the year of the donor’s death.
Despite the staggering volume of production, the quality of many of these scrolls is exquisite. The text is written in alternate lines of gold and silver ink, and the illuminations are evocative, almost ethereal, the deities engulfed in diaphanous silver clouds.
Since there were over five thousand scrolls commissioned, and it is only natural that they became repetitive, especially if the artists, assembled in specialized sutra workshops, were working under the pressure of a deadline – to be completed before the death of the patron. In this environment, artists lacked the leisure to be inventive, and images were reduced to stereotypes. The shortcuts of a mass-production system give these exquisite scrolls a remarkable sameness. – Navin Kumar Gallery
Anoku-Fu Sutra, from 1183 to 1185
gold and silver ink on indigo paper
Anoku-Fu Sutra, from 1183 to 1185
gold and silver ink on indigo paper
Anoku-Fu Sutra, from 1183 to 1185
gold and silver ink on indigo paper
Other works on Indigo…
800–900AD (300 years before the Sutras above). Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Gold and silver ink on indigo paper (unknown year)
10 1/4 x 7 1/4 in
Love Indigo?
You too can buy your way to eternal salvation by joining the Indigo Workshop March 7 & 14. We’ll know your spirit is saved by the blissful smile on your face, and the sight of your deep blue hands.
Related Posts
Yogurt Holds the Blueberry
Usually when people draw, they draw a thing, and then that thing floats in a kind of nothing space called the “background.” But what would happen if you didn’t draw things? What would happen if instead of things you drew the space between things? What would it look like to draw the air or the …
CALL FOR ART: Seattle Artist League Portrait Awards
Announcing the 2nd annual Seattle Artist League Portrait Awards! 1st Prize: $1,000 cash2nd Prize: $500 SAL Gift Certificate3rd Prize: $300 SAL Gift CertificateHonorable Mentions: $100 SAL Gift Certificates Guest judge: Catherine Lepp Call ends 3/1/2022 @ midnight PST The Seattle Artist League Portrait Awards aim to encourage artists to focus on and develop the theme of portraiture in their work. The …
The problem with posting underrepresented artists
My last V. Note proclaimed itself “the first of four posts highlighting black artists with professional careers in both painting and printmaking.” I had done an internet search for black artists, and found a Wiki page with a fantastic list of artists I could research. To narrow down the list, I looked for all the artists …
My Lovely Lady Lumps
If you listen to NPR, you may have heard yesterday’s story on “Why Certain Poor Shepherds In Nativity Scenes Have Huge, Misshapen Throats.” According to retired surgeon Renzo Dionigi of the University of Insubria in Varese, Italy (NPR), goiters have been a sign of poverty and geographic location. The purpose of including goiters in paintings may have …