Art-name
Encyclopedia
An art-name is a pseudonym
, or penname, used by an East Asian artist
, which they sometimes change. The word and the idea to use a pseudonym originated from China
, then became popular in other East Asian countries (especially Japan
and Korea
).
In some cases, artists adopted different art-names at different stages of their career, usually to mark significant changes in their life. One typical example could be Tang Yin
of the Ming Dynasty
, who had more than ten art-names. One extreme example in Japan of this is Hokusai
, who in the period 1798 to 1806 alone used no fewer than six.
, a famous poet during Tang Dynasty
.
In early modern
Japan, a woodblock print
artist's first gō was usually given to them by the head of the school (a group of artists and apprentices, with a senior as master of the school) in which they initially studied; this gō usually included one of the syllables of the master's gō. For example, one of Hokusai's earliest art-names was Shunrō; his master Katsukawa Shunshō
having granted him the character 'shun' from his own name.
One can often track the relationship among artists with this, especially in later years, when it seems to have been fairly (although not uniformly) systematic (particularly in the Utagawa school
) that the first syllable of the pupil's gō was the last syllable of the master's gō.
Thus, an artist named Toyoharu
had a student named Toyohiro, who, in turn, had as a pupil the famous landscape artist Hiroshige
.
Another person who studied under Toyoharu was the principal head of the Utagawa school
, Toyokuni. Toyokuni had pupils named Kunisada and Kuniyoshi. Kuniyoshi, in turn, had as a student Yoshitoshi, whose pupils included Toshikata.
with the zig-zag in the upper right-hand corner. His successors continued this practice.
In modern scholarship on the subject, a Roman numeral identifies an artist in the sequence of artists using a gō. Thus, Kunisada I is also known as Toyokuni III, since he was the third artist to sign with that gō.
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
, or penname, used by an East Asian artist
Artist
An artist is a person engaged in one or more of any of a broad spectrum of activities related to creating art, practicing the arts and/or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only...
, which they sometimes change. The word and the idea to use a pseudonym originated from China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, then became popular in other East Asian countries (especially Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
and Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
).
In some cases, artists adopted different art-names at different stages of their career, usually to mark significant changes in their life. One typical example could be Tang Yin
Tang Yin
Tang Yin , better known by his courtesy name Tang Bohu , was a Chinese scholar, painter, calligrapher, and poet of the Ming Dynasty period whose life story has become a part of popular lore...
of the Ming Dynasty
Ming Dynasty
The Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...
, who had more than ten art-names. One extreme example in Japan of this is Hokusai
Hokusai
was a Japanese artist, ukiyo-e painter and printmaker of the Edo period. He was influenced by such painters as Sesshu, and other styles of Chinese painting...
, who in the period 1798 to 1806 alone used no fewer than six.
Art-names and schools
The form was first used by Li BaiLi Bai
Li Bai , also known in the West by various other transliterations, especially Li Po, was a major Chinese poet of the Tang dynasty poetry period. He has been regarded as one of the greatest poets in China's Tang period, which is often called China's "golden age" of poetry. Around a thousand existing...
, a famous poet during Tang Dynasty
Tang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period. It was founded by the Li family, who seized power during the decline and collapse of the Sui Empire...
.
In early modern
Edo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
Japan, a woodblock print
Ukiyo-e
' is a genre of Japanese woodblock prints and paintings produced between the 17th and the 20th centuries, featuring motifs of landscapes, tales from history, the theatre, and pleasure quarters...
artist's first gō was usually given to them by the head of the school (a group of artists and apprentices, with a senior as master of the school) in which they initially studied; this gō usually included one of the syllables of the master's gō. For example, one of Hokusai's earliest art-names was Shunrō; his master Katsukawa Shunshō
Katsukawa Shunsho
was a Japanese painter and printmaker in the ukiyo-e style, and the leading artist of the Katsukawa school. Shunshō studied under Miyagawa Shunsui, son and student of Miyagawa Chōshun, both equally famous and talented ukiyo-e artists. Shunshō is most well known for introducing a new form of...
having granted him the character 'shun' from his own name.
One can often track the relationship among artists with this, especially in later years, when it seems to have been fairly (although not uniformly) systematic (particularly in the Utagawa school
Utagawa school
The was a group of Japanese woodblock print artists, founded by Toyoharu. His pupil, Toyokuni I, took over after Toyoharu's death and raised the group to become the most famous and powerful woodblock print school for the remainder of the 19th century....
) that the first syllable of the pupil's gō was the last syllable of the master's gō.
Thus, an artist named Toyoharu
Utagawa Toyoharu
Utagawa Toyoharu was a Japanese printmaker and founder of the Utagawa school. Born in the Kansai region of Japan, he studied in Kyoto under Tsuruzawa Tangei, a Kanō school painter, before moving to Edo in 1760. There he continued his studies under Toriyama Sekien...
had a student named Toyohiro, who, in turn, had as a pupil the famous landscape artist Hiroshige
Hiroshige
was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist, and one of the last great artists in that tradition. He was also referred to as Andō Hiroshige and by the art name of Ichiyūsai Hiroshige ....
.
Another person who studied under Toyoharu was the principal head of the Utagawa school
Utagawa school
The was a group of Japanese woodblock print artists, founded by Toyoharu. His pupil, Toyokuni I, took over after Toyoharu's death and raised the group to become the most famous and powerful woodblock print school for the remainder of the 19th century....
, Toyokuni. Toyokuni had pupils named Kunisada and Kuniyoshi. Kuniyoshi, in turn, had as a student Yoshitoshi, whose pupils included Toshikata.
Inherited and reused art-names
In some schools, in particular the main Utagawa school, the gō of the most senior member was adopted when the master died and the chief pupil assumed his position. Perhaps as a sign of respect, artists might take the gō of a previous artist. This makes attribution difficult. The censors' seal helps determine a particular print's date. Style also is significant. For example, Kunisada, once he changed his gō to Toyokuni, initiated the practice of signing prints with a signature in the elongated oval toshidama ('New Year's Jewel') seal of the Utagawa school, an unusual cartoucheCartouche
In Egyptian hieroglyphs, a cartouche is an ellipse with a horizontal line at one end, indicating that the text enclosed is a royal name, coming into use during the beginning of the Fourth Dynasty under Pharaoh Sneferu, replacing the earlier serekh...
with the zig-zag in the upper right-hand corner. His successors continued this practice.
In modern scholarship on the subject, a Roman numeral identifies an artist in the sequence of artists using a gō. Thus, Kunisada I is also known as Toyokuni III, since he was the third artist to sign with that gō.