Contents
Tosa Mitsunobu
Establishing the Tosa school of Japanese painting.
Bamboo in the Four Seasons
- Born
- c. 1434
- Birthplace
- Unknown
- Died
- 1525
More people
Tosa Mitsunobu
Japanese court painter associated with the late medieval Tosa tradition.
Early life
Early record
His early life is poorly documented. Active by the 1460s, he became associated with the imperial court’s painting workshop and the yamato-e tradition.
Career
- 1469
Painting Office
A letter from Ashikaga Yoshimasa records his appointment to manage painting commissions.
- 1501
Court rank
Rose to junior fourth rank, lower grade, the highest rank then available to a painter.
Selected work
Bamboo in the Four Seasons
A screen painting attributed to him in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Beyond work
An artistic family
His son Mitsumochi continued the family's painting tradition. His daughter's marriage to Kanō Motonobu also linked the Tosa and Kanō artistic households.
Poetry and cultural networks
Participated in linked-verse circles alongside court figures including Sanjōnishi Sanetaka.
Sources & photo credit
Biography and career ↗Biographical references ↗An artistic family — biographical source ↗Metropolitan Museum — Bamboo in the Four Seasons ↗National Diet Library — career record ↗Original photograph. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
Photo: Draft portrait attributed to Tosa Mitsumochi, sixteenth century. Public domain · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.