Painters and Printers
Kanō
The Kanō school was patronised by the shōgun, the military rulers, and dominated Japanese painting from the late fifteenth until the late nineteenth century. The Kanō school was influenced by Zen Buddhist ink painting but depicted secular subjects. As well as painting landscapes in black ink on silk, Kanō painters, by adding bright colours and gold foil to bold brushwork, developed their own style. This type of art was favoured by the wealthy.
Tosa
The Tosa school was founded in the early fifteenth century, and Tosa artists were the official painters to the Imperial court. Tosa artists painted classical subjects including scenes from Genji, a famous eleventh century novel set in the court. They worked in the yamato-e style, which used Japanese techniques and subjects, as opposed to Chinese, and their use of bright colours is said to have influenced Kanō painters.
Ukiyo-e
Ukiyo-e were woodblock prints that illustrated beautiful people, including courtesans, actors, teahouse waitresses, and sumo wrestlers; landscapes, especially famous places; warriors, and figures from history, myth and legends. In the early seventeenth century, ukiyo-e images were printed in black with one or two colours occasionally added either by hand or printed. From the 1670s onwards they were printed in full colour. Ukiyo-e were a popular art form that was affordable for townspeople.