1. Chapter 9
p. 218
AUTUMN COLORS ON THE
QIAO AND HUA MOUNTAINS
Zhao Mengfu
Yuan dynasty, 1296 CE
Handscroll, ink and color on paper
111⁄4″ 5 363⁄4″ (28.6 5 93.3 cm)
National Palace Museum, Taipei,
Taiwan, Republic of China.
Ava Lee
Spring 202
Art History FA-111-01
Okami
Clover Studio
April 20th, 2006 CE
512 x 448in resolution
Ukiyo-e and Sumi-ink style in digital
pixel format
The art can be found in the game Okami
on the Wii, DS, and Nintendo Switch
2. Line/Scale
Okami
The lines used in the game Okami is made to
represent ancient Japanese tapestries and ink. The
style is to be similar to Ukiyo-e style used in nature
type drawings and inkings. Because of this stylization
choice each game screenshot is meant to look like a
picture painting by an Ancient Japanese artist. The
thick lines are to be similar to the ink lines from a
brush.
The lines compliment the scale very accurately. In our
chosen piece the cherry blossoms which are in the
background have thinner lines while closer up to the
wolf the rock they sit on has thicker lines. Due to the
ukiyo-e style and the use of brush pen the lines are
not going in one direction but are flowing as nature
does without a direction or guidline. However, the
buildings have a curved or upright direction to them
to contrast from the nature.
Zhao's Art
Similar to Okami the lines in the piece are made with a brush
and ink along with colors to create a landscape. The thick and
thin lines give off a dimension to help show trees in the fore
ground and the background. Both use black ink in order to
highly define the separation of an item from the background
or land with different hills and sizes. The buildings also give off
a rigid and upright feature contrasting the ukiyo-e style of
nature which is natural looking.
3. Color/Pattern
Okami
The colors used in the Okami image reminisce traditional styles
of Japanese art like our comparison piece by Zhao. Colors of
the red and tan that closely resemble the Zhao piece.
The pattern used in the coloration piece of Okami is to have
remarkable things, important items, or buildings have the red
and tan color as to separate it from the natural beauty of
nature. Things like the Japanese arch are marked by this
coloration as to signify that Japanese people had put
these items here and that they meant something to the culture.
Zhao's Piece
Zhao's piece shares the similar coloration of the tan
background, due to the paper they used, with red
coloration of both the paper and stamps of owners of the
art piece, as well the black ink used for the lineart.
The patterns used on the Zhao piece are the use of trees
and stamps on the piece. The trees hold a similar look to
them because most trees look the
Same. The stamps, of course, are
Not the same, but since they are
Repeated on the piece they add to
It. While not an original part of the
Piece they have grown to be a part
Of it. The stamps are the marks of
People who have owned, bought or
Inherited the piece. Mostly it would
Have been owned by high ranked emperors or samurai or
those of high stature.
4. Shape/Emphasis
Zhao's Piece
Zhao's piece has important emphasis in where
the trees are similar to each other. In Zhao's piece
the buildings are rigid and smooth showing a
square, or geometric shape, which contrasts to
the natural style of the trees.
Emphasis comes from the trees which are
different and have an ink wash that gives off a
green coloration that pops from the black ink that
covers most of the paper.
While the ink stamps in red have good emphasis
to show off who has owned the piece before, the
true emphasis of the painting as a whole is the
green.
Okami
Shape is very important to both pieces. In Okami the shape of the
trees, rocks, leaves all remain the same.
The repeated use of shapes in nature and buildings shows
that while certain pieces look exactly the same, they are still
beautiful and unique in the colors and textures they use.
This emphasis of color shows an important meaning and beauty
to nature and the Japanese buildings
5. Texture/Pattern
Okami
Texture and pattern both play a prominent role in the Okami image the
ground and trees as well as buildings share similar textures and patterns
with rough and ink wash type of coloration to mimic that of traditional
Japanese paintings.
Zhao's Piece
The pattern in this piece is found both in the
original piece and the additions of writings
and the stamps. The trees all share a similar
ink wash pattern which gives off a green color.
The stamps are similar to each other and have
a red color that greatly contrasts from the
piece to signify the meaning of those who
have owned the piece in the past.
6. The similarities in both pieces give an emphasis that
nature is important to their culture and that it is
integrated into everything they make or do. The
similarities also show of the beauty and intricate
details of nature as well as human made structures.
Both share the delicate strokes of ink made by a
brush and both are a part of the culture of Japan as
Okami is a religious story created by the people of
Japan. Similar to Zhao's piece which we can infer was
important by the amount of stamps and writings
made about the piece.
While a video game, Okami still possesses many skills
that the piece made by Zhao has. The ukiyo-e style is
heavily referenced in the game to pieces like Zhao's
since it was an important stage of Japan's art history.
It was to represent the flow of nature, which both art
pieces successfully show.
Similarities
In the end both pieces are simply breathing taking and
represent Japan well. While very different they both are
still an important part of their culture and an important
part of the art culture.
7. Work Cited
Haynes, Jeff. "Okami HD", Common Sense Media, 2018, https://www.commonsensemedia.org/game-reviews/okami-hd.
NPM's Anime Carnaval, "Paintings", National Palace Museum, https://theme.npm.edu.tw/exh102/animecarnival/en/ch04-
1.html.
Stokstad, Marilyn. “Later Asian Art”, Art a Brief History, Sixth Edition, United States of America, 2011, 218.
