The University Gallery: Exhibition Programme 2004-2005
Kawamura Bumpo: Artist of Two Worlds
13 October - 10 December 2004 This exhibition is the first anywhere to be devoted to the Kyoto artist Kawamura Bumpo (d. 1821). In his lifetime Bumpo was well regarded as a painter and in demand as a designer of illustrated books. Today he is best known for his books, while his accomplished paintings are virtually forgotten. This exhibition seeks to redress this imbalance by introducing a range of Bumpo's paintings and reassessing his book illustrations in the context provided by those paintings. The exhibition includes loans from the British Museum as well as private collections in the UK, Europe and Japan.
Bumpo depicted subjects favoured by Chinese ‘literati’ painters, and contemporary Japanese scenes. The Chinese subjects encompass idealised landscapes, birds-and-flowers, and scholars engaged in the pleasures of poetry, calligraphy, painting and wine. The Japanese scenes include sympathetic accounts of the everyday lives of ordinary people, and landscapes that capture the beauty and tranquillity of the old imperial capital of Kyoto where the artist lived and worked.
Bumpo's art is characterised by free and vigorous brushwork, bold compositions and a pervasive sense of good humour.
An illustrated book accompanies the exhibition. Written by Ellis Tinios, who has curated the exhibition, it is published by the University Gallery Leeds with generous financial support from The Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation and The Great Britain Sasakawa Foundation. Please see the Gallery's Publications page for more details.