Ink and Watercolour painting by Hanabusa Itcho, 1710-24

A lively and characterful ink and colour painting by the early 18th century Japanese artist and haiku poet, Hanabusa Itcho (1652 –1724). In the picture we see a woman peeking through a make shift curtain wrapped between a pine tree and a blossom tree that is bisected with a wisp of cloud. She is watching two shoguns who are resting on a bench, one recumbent, the other leaning back as he eats. In the foreground, a small boy rushes to the chef who stretches out an arm to receive his plate.

The painting is on handmade paper and is signed Hanabusa Itcho with a seal. It is in excellent condition with no foxing. The colours are still fresh.

Hanabusa Itcho was a Japanese painter, calligrapher and poet. Trained in the Kano tradition, he soon formed his own style, which would come to be known as the Hanabusa school. He often depicted the commonplace and comical sides to life. In 1698, he was exiled to the island of Miyake-jima for parodying one of the shogun‘s concubines. He returned in 1710, when he formally took the name Hanabusa Itcho.