Information on Haiga & Sumi-e

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About Haiga

Haiga is a form of painting that combines three traditional Japanese arts:

1. Haiku poems, which are short poems that
o. must contain exactly 17 syllables and have
o. some kind of seasonal reference.
2. Japanese calligraphy, which is written with
o. black sumi ink and has a tradition of
o. thousands of years carried over from China.
3. Watercolor painting, which in this case
o. employs a special kind of paints called
o. gansai.

Each haiga must integrate the three forms into one painting to express one simple feeling or thought. In haiga, the artist may either compose her (or his) own haiku or may use haiku written by others. In my paintings, all haiku are my own.

Sumi-e Painting

About Sumi-e

In Japanese “Sumi” means Chinese black ink, and “e” is picture or painting, so a sumi-e is a kind of wash painting that is painted with Chinese black ink and a brush. Originally sumi-e were painted only with sumi ink, but through time color paints, gansai, have been added.

Sumi-e represents not only a unique and beautiful form of art, but a philosophy as well. The philosophy of sumi-e is to capture the ”ki” of the subject. “Ki” in Japanese or “chi” in Chinese means life sprit. Sumi-e aims to depict the sprit rather than the outward shape of the subject. In creating a picture the artist must grasp the sprit. Concentration and self-discipline are essential. It is important that you cultivate a habit of capturing the ki of a subject in everyday life.

Haiga Painting

Brief history:
Sumi-e, Haiga, and their connection

Sumi-e was introduced to Japan in the 7th century from China. Over time it became popular among Japanese Artists, and in the 15th century Sesshu established what was considered the first purely Japanese-style sumi-e, “suiboku-ga”.

The beginning of haiga is not clear. Scholars have different theories: one theory states that haiga was started by Nonoguchi Ryuko (1595 - 1669). Another theory names Watanbe Kazan (1584 - 1654). If we assume that Ryuko and Kazan started haiga, then the history of haiga starts roughly from the 17th century when Basho (1644 -1694) also contributed to the

development of the art on the strength of his position in haiku.

It can be considered that connection of sumi-e and haiga begin in the 17th century. The development of haiga has been influenced by the traditional Japanese painting schools, “yamato-e schools”, as well as sumi-e, especially “nanga” known as bunjin-ga or literati painting. But it was the haiku poets themselves who gave special characteristics to haiga as they endeavored to create a new style of painting in its own right. Buson (1716 - 1783) and Issa (1763 -1827) were both well-known for their delightful haiga as well as their haiku.

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