Ink and wash painting
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| Ink and wash painting | |
|---|---|
| Image:Pine Trees.jpg | |
| Chinese name | |
| Traditional Chinese | 水墨畫 |
| Simplified Chinese | 水墨画 |
| Pinyin | Shuǐmòhuà |
| Japanese name | |
| Kanji | 水墨画 or 墨絵 |
| Hepburn Romaji | Suibokuga or Sumie |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 수묵화 |
| Hanja | 水墨畫 |
| Revised Romanization | Sumukhwa |
| McCune-Reischauer | Sumukhwa |
| Vietnamese name | |
| Quốc ngữ | Tranh thuỷ mặc |
Ink and wash painting is an East Asian type of brush painting. It is also known as wash painting, or by its Japanese name, sumi-e. Only black ink — the same as used in East Asian calligraphy — in various concentrations is used.
Wash painting developed in China during the Tang Dynasty (618-907) and became an established style during the Song Dynasty (960-1279). It was introduced to Japan in the mid-14th century by Zen Buddhist monks, and grew in popularity until its peak during the Muromachi period (1338-1573).
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Tools
In wash paintings, as in calligraphy, the artist usually grinds their own ink using an ink stick and a grinding stone, but prepared inks are also available. Most ink sticks are made of densely packed charcoal ash from bamboo or pine. The artist puts a few drops of water on the ink stone and grinds the ink stick in a circular motion until a smooth, black ink of the desired concentration is made. Ink sticks are of higher quality and are preferred for works that are to be displayed. Prepared inks are useful for practice.
Wash painting brushes are the same as the brushes used for calligraphy, and are traditionally made from bamboo, and goat, ox, horse, or wolf hair. The brush hairs are tapered to a fine point, a feature vital to the style of wash paintings.
See Calligraphy for more information on the tools used in both calligraphy and wash painting.
Techniques
Four kinds of brush strokes are the basis for wash painting. The strokes, known as the "Four Gentlemen", are named for the plants they depict — the ume (梅), the orchid (蘭), the chrysanthemum (菊), and the bamboo (竹).
