Shōki, the Demon Queller

painting

Japanese Collection

Accession Nr.: 6784
Type: painting
Artist/Maker:
Date of production:
1847
Edo (Tokugawa) period
Place of production:
Acquisition: collected by Péter Vay
Signed: Signed:
八十八老卍筆 (hachijūhachi rō Manji hitsu /painted by the 88 years old man, Manji)
Marks: Két szögletes, vörös pecsét. (Hokusai életművében nem ismert pecsétek.)
Materials/Techniques: ink and pale colours on paper, not mounted
Dimensions: height: 124.3 cm
width: 57.4 cm
Shōki is depicted with a terrifying appearance: bushy hair, thick eyebrows, a fearsome expression, and a brawny build. He is wearing enormous boots and wielding a sword. He grasps a demon in his left hand, pushing its face towards the ground. Since neither the inscription nor the seals match exactly the signatures and seals used by Hokusai, the identity of the creator is in question. Utagawa Kunisada published a woodblock print almost identical to the present work between 1847 and 1852, and it is possible that this painting was a preparatory drawing for it or that it was made after the woodblock print. In either case, attribution is problematic.