Early Japanese painting was heavily influenced by Chinese styles from the Tang Dynasty. The earliest high-style paintings found in tombs showed Chinese and Buddhist influences. The first major style was kara-e, meaning Chinese-style painting, which imitated Tang Dynasty works. Originally referring only to imported Tang works, kara-e later described paintings made in Japan by artists trained in China. As Japanese culture became more independent, the Yamato-e style developed featuring colorful gold backgrounds and scenes from nature or literature. Yamato-e works were commonly found as hanging scrolls and screens, whereas kara-e works typically used horizontal hand scrolls like Chinese paintings.

1. Early Japanese
Painting Styles

2. China, with its well developed culture, had
an enormous impact on the development
of Japanese culture.

3. The earliest painting (of a high style
admired by the ruling class) were found in
tombs. They were influenced by Chinese
painting style and Buddhism.

4. The first painting style of Japan was Kama-
e, which means Chinese style painting. It
was the painting of China’s T’ang Dynasty.
Details from
T’ang Dynasty paintings

5. Originally Kara-e referred to imported
T’ang art only, but eventually Japan sent
painters to be trained in China, and Kara-e
began to refer to T’ang style art produced
in Japan.
Painting by Chinese
trained Japanese
artist.
Left—Saicho.
Right—Kukai.

6. As Japan began to move away from
the wholesale borrowing of China’s
culture, a new Japanese painting style
developed, Yamato-e, which means
Japanese style painting.

7. Yamato-e is often very colorful with
gold backgrounds. It depicts nature or
scenes from literature.
Scene from Talesof Genji

8. Yamato-e can come in the familiar
Chinese form of hand scrolls that are
unrolled to be viewed.

9. Yamato-e more frequently comes in
the more uniquely Japanese form of
hanging scrolls and screens
Left—Parts of a
hanging screen.
Right—Hanging Scroll
showing the Honshi,
Ichimonji, and the
Nakamawashi.

10. Yamato-e more frequently comes in
the more uniquely Japanese form of
hanging scrolls and screens
Six fold screen

11. How do I tell if a landscape is
Chinese or Japanese?
The Yamoto-e style becomes easier to distinguish from the painting styles of
China; however, landscape paintings are still tricky to tell apart.
Chinese Landscape Qualities to look for in a Chinese
Landscape:
• Usually only see a part at a
time.
• Wider because it is part of a
long (horizontal) scroll
• Attempt at portraying 3D (tries
to show depth)
• Smoky quality
• Shading

12. How do I tell if a landscape is
Chinese or Japanese?
The Yamoto-e style becomes easier to distinguish from the painting styles of
China; however, landscape paintings are still tricky to tell apart.
Qualities to look for in a Japanese Landscape: Japanese
• Longer vertically because it is part of a Landscapes
hanging scroll or a pane of a tall screen.
• Stronger lines
• Less emphasis on realistic portrayal
• Flatter, less emphasis on 3D
• Depicts Japanese architecture.