IGS Art
Michael Alford
IGS has two very nice index pages for its art, they are
<http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/gallery.html>
and
<http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/gallery2.html>
You can reach both of them from the contents page
<http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/contents.html>
I would like to call to call your attention to one particular picture, which
is quite interesting, _Kisaburo_Onogawa_and_the_Goblin_ Spend a few seconds
contemplating it :-)
malf
-
Gallery:
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/sixpoets.html
She has finished preparing herself, and so is
now waiting to be picked up. You must first
be polite with this lady before playing at Go.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/dragon.html
Perhaps there is much to say about this kind
of "Rorschach Test" however I am inclined
to look for the face on Mars or JFK's profile
in that sharp outcropping.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/book.html
She realizes from her Go Studies how much of
a disaster was her ordinary world (home-life)
with people in anxiety, ignorance, and boredom.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/mgt.html
Somebody hiding at the lower-left near what
appears to be a "tea service" indicates the latter
element of that title. Differences in vegetation
on the left and right also indicate slight variances
in their respective moods, and frames-of-mind.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/trapped.html
Note the simple, almost "Zen" type brush stroke
to outline the man at the left versus the wretched
style for the demon on the left, associated also
with the upended _goban_. "Zen" style shows
a quality of being carefree, a quality often absent
from "demon-possessed" Go Players. A person
understanding "Zen" will not be anxious over Go.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/spider.html
It's difficult to say whether demons are being
conjured up, or kept at bay, through studies
with Go. The player at left appears to have
allowed himself to get heated up, causing the
leftmost observor to wonder where the demons
were coming from. The man at the far right
has found a way to balance his "inner demons"
but only at the cost of an empty _goban_ which
here seems to have three layers, i.e. territory for
white, black and empty, placating everybody.
Notice too, that the Earth Spider holds a fabric:
one half appears to be that of the Twilight Zone
and the other half appears connected to a Green
Zone of the Real World.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/wisteria.html
The arrangement of the bunched orange cloth is
here intended to convey "availability" with an
empty Go Board in the background indicating
"but please follow the rules."
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/kfuseki.html
A festive air, but he seems already in a grimace.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/immortal.html
There are some "visual puns" occuring here: the
Immortal is shown swatting an innocent cockroach,
however a sleeping student has the cockroach on his
head which may be the actual cockroach the Imortal
smacks but can then claim plausible deniability. The
"rat" is allegorical to a sleeping student who in
curiosity allowed his head too close to his studies.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/nextmove.html
Not much to say: the next move is straightforward.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/marionette.html
Yet she holds a kind of dust-ball, bottle-washer,
or maybe a sweeper. Blue and black dominate
this color-scheme, pointing toward a realization
of life's ritual qualities and of its long duration.
Thus the puppeteer's expression also indicates
his realization also of being a "Marionette."
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/tada1.html
This time an upheld Go Board is a threatening
gesture, with so many angular qualities in the
picture, and the fan held by palm-up fashion
indicates plea for mercy rather than the fan as
any kind of counterweapon. If one is going to
win at Go play the game, not one's opponent.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/sparrows.html
A simple theme: the sparrows nesting in a basket
reflective of stones and a _goban_.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/waterfall.html
This one has lots of monkeys, and hints of faces
of goblins or dragons. In my opinion, however,
the Go Board is just now "emerging" from the
water, rather than having been thrown down into
it, for these monkeys soon to discover that
and maybe climb their way up the waterfall.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/fweb.html
Another spider theme, with the woman's
hair looking like a horse, and the samurai's
posture indicating some desire to conceal it.
A reference to fart is also possible, and it
seems the _goban_ makes a hard pillow.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/thecatw.html
Tantalizing but seems oppressive to the "four
books" variety. She notices in the four cats
(the "cat woman" located in the inset with hints
of cat-ears and claws) that there seems to be
a way of discriminating among essential and
inessential. A "fourth cat" in the latern shadow.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/fbooks.html
She seems perplexed because the answers are
found in four separate books, yet it's not clear
how to combine them in any coherent fashion.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/samurai.html
The excitement of their game has left a tea cup
overturned. The player on the left knows there
is a weakness but he keeps it concealed while
the player at right is distracted, who in turn is
trying to stop another goblin from revealing that
he is aware of the weakness that the player at
left is concealing. The central onlooker, a
witness or game-recorder, is smart merely to
keep to the discpline of being an observor.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/dusk.html
As they continue to play their stones will
become more and more indistinct so as to
render it a difficulty to tell white from black.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/pine.html
A dotted-quality indicates how the artist may
have been "getting carried away" by the dots
of a _goban_. Here the pine-tree appears to
be supporting a mountain: the motif of blue
and orange is reflected also in their kimonos,
and fronds indicate a southern exposure.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/children.html
None other than the children themselves who
seem to be playing on a smaller-size _goban_.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/sixbelle.html
Lending a compelling quality to Utamoro's
work is the naturalness that avoids harsh
symmetries or perfections: her hair is not
entirely arranged, the eyes are inexact, the
long tress in the inset indicates barbering.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/mockgo.html
The figure at the left holds a conch-shell which
when blown signifies a call to life. Thereby the
game is "mock Go" because nobody can say
what kind of life it shall be, i.e. not fatalism.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/where.html
The rough-cut here indicates our fearless
philosopher has gone to a place so remote
that he cannot find another player of Go.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/porcelain.html
Two figures "flow" somewhat into each other,
conveying a sense of the liquid fluidity of life.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/gathering.html
A fourth encounters these three friends, but if
one looks closely there seems to be in the
background the eye of a dragon in the cave.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/thesages.html
Famous personages dominate this scene, even
the Go Player himself has a rather overdone head,
fishing and drinking seem to be awarded much more
importance than a diminutive _goban_. They seem to
relish in the fact of being more important than Go.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/omen.html
I am uncertain but it seems she is holding a kind
of ruling device to set lines or to verify measures
on the _goban_. Throughout this picture a sense
of something "being not correct" is conveyed, i.e.
notice anomalies on the cabinet on the right side.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/spgame.html
The lady displaying a scroll rides the back of a
spider whose tracks we see can walk across the
ocean. Mushrooms grow on sides of the _goban_.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/probsolve.html
The picture displays six ladies and it seems a seventh
large figure, possibly male, is half-displayed in the
right margin to illustrate some imple "life-and-death"
aspect. Faces on all six ladies seem nondescript and
identical, even with two dressed identically.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/accomplishments.html
She should know these to be a wifely candidate: arts
of painting or calligraphy, literature, sewing, music,
and of course Go. Flower arranging or tea ceremony does
not have a person to accompany it. Absent from the
scene was cooking, which nobody should need mention.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/afternoon.html
Everything in this picture intended to convey
laziness: the absense of detail, the simple clothes,
the onlooker's laziness at not getting a better view,
the lack of development in the _fuseki_ pattern.
A sake bottle appears nearby the pillow which
will soon be utilized when they fall asleep.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/ladyk.html
Before her is a _koto_ or Japanese zither,
writing implements, the street scene photo,
and characteristic overwrought hairpiece,
plus extra layers of designer kimonos.
Of all these the fan seems to be simplest
and look where it is placed.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/goblins.html
Perhaps the Go Board is less terrifying than
its likely alternatives. :-) He has been
waiting for his opponent to arrive, and the
woman who crouches on the far right may
have been the reason. A tiger is hidden behind
the lampshade, but in this case who was the
crouching tiger and who the hidden dragon?
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/ferry.html
A classic: if you cannot find the solution
in "this" game try looking at "another" game.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/sumo.html
One might erroneously suppose here that
Daidozan Bungoro is going to swing the
_goban_ at the candle, but instead he is
merely holding up the board which itself
is displayed parallel to the candle. Thereby
the _goban_ is the candle flame of Daidozan
Bungoro himself.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/grweiqi.html
That "strange plant" seems to be a kind of
sponge-brain representing Su's attitude. A
larger bowl of stones will be necessary when
playing Su. This larger bowl is proportionate
also to the "table" on which Su is sitting. :-)
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/oneeye.html
The board is empty, but she can just barely
see how to make one eye. This is a "joke."
The board is a vast _ko_ which is "one eye."
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/blind.html
Outside is an ocean scene, since the only way to
approach the (infinite) ocean is by application
of a wide and encompassing strategy.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/cherrys.html
It helps to "Print Scrn" and paste into another
image viewer, then crop and zoom, if this is not
clear. He holds the sword with a handkerchief
in what appears to be a gesture of _hara_kiri_.
The dress is red, or maroon, in anticipation of
blood soon to be spilt. The background depicts
Winter Scene: he is unwilling to wait for spring.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/altercation.html
The "clothesline" used to tie up his opponent was
formerly holding the lamp which the woman in
the picture now holds. But from whom had she
obtained what appears to be a sword, or lance?
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/lightn.html
Nichiren muses that trying to stop talk about a
"Divine Wind" is useless. Even so, Nichiren is
going to make some use of the gossip however
one of the "proponents" of that gossip is instead
a Mongul invader. Then the object of that gossip
("Divine Wind") magically dispatches the Mongul.
So the "opening moves" were confabulations about
that non-existent "Divine Wind" and so it was the
falsehood which became the Mongul's downfall.
Gallery2:
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/mist.html
As with "mist" the shape seems hidden from whence
those two prisoner stones had arrived, and at least we
find "sensible" women not using so many hairpieces.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/calligrapher4.html
A flattened chest and "forward tilt" to her head indicates
the woman is much older, thus is qualified to paint this.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/calligraphy.html
But this is a very simple calligraphy, indicating a
return to fundamentals.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/visitation.html
Seem to be a composite faces of dragon or goblin in
the mist which may indicate the elderly gentleman at
the left, perhaps a Sensei, is also an apparition seen
only by the player not facing us.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/stumble.html
Well, the sword is already on the deck, yet the woman
who appears to have been seated on the _goban_ does
not look very lively, indicating that the ghost at left
is her own spirit who had been awakened by commotion
to turn around and wonder what was going on. That
this was at the ocean introduces the "infinity" theme,
and with the white stones visible the woman's ghost is
perhaps the Sensei who had sacrificed something but
won the game, which explains the nature of this stumble.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/elders.html
This mountain is very "fragrant" because they each wear
differently colored kimonos, yet there are two pairings
indicating who the players are: one between the man in
red and the man standing in orange and dark blue, and
the other wearing the pink droopy cap who plays black.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/kenuki.html
Here the knobby-shapes of legs on Go Boards appears
to engender their own independent significance.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/beat.html
Yes, this may be how to "beat" an opponent, but is
this really how to win a game?
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/autumngo.html
The "theme of the two dots" on foreheads here shows
itself both on the opponent player's face we can see
and also on the woman's face who appears to beckon toward
something (maybe keeping warm during an impending winter).
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/balanced.html
Certainly a fantastic assortment of demons on the
lighter side, and with all of those warfaring tools
or armaments/accessories/accoutrements there's little
to be done about creepy crawlies. Whether he is holding
the Go Board aloft or by some magical/mystical process
is suspended from heaven by it could be an inquiry for
open speculation. There doesn't seem to be any "ground"
to this picture; merely proportion of hardware to gremlins.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/kabuact.html
They must not know very much about Go because they are
not seated across from each other, the board is not
center-stage, and the black prisoner stones are not
placed in any lid. Thus this piece is merely a "show
and tell" as with a (Kabuki) method acting.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/scholars.html
These players are curious about the observor here,
which is all too typical of scholars having no active
participation with their own projects but tending toward
review of what others do. Above them we find those in
pontification and to the left are two engaged with serious
advice in matters of state. Of nine in this picture, five
are dressed, for the most part, in white. Is that the eye
of some large creature in the cliff face to the right?
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/threemice.html
A woman's body is suggested in the background shading.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/theriver.html
This is one where we need a super-high resolution photo,
since there's a riot of detail still indistinct at the
"larger version" resolution. As with many of "the Imortals"
genre a Go Board does not occupy the prominent position but
focuses on some daily life scene activities. It's not going
to be possible to review this particular painting without
super-high resolution ability.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/arhats.html
For some reason, perhaps the style and content, my impression
of this is associated with brainwashing, and so I'm uncertain
just what kind of message it's supposed to convey.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/arhatone.html
He's got that "Large Cauliflower Ear" of the Buddha but notice
the jewelry and sharpened fingernails plus a dog-shaped incense
bowl. He may be seated on something or merely floating on
nothingness, indicated by the empty shoes. The "brush" he is
holding indicates luxuriousness: beware of charlatanism!
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/kaiho.html
They may have drawn their own temporary Go Board on the rock,
since the lines are irregular, and used whatever tokens they
could find. The picnic basket seems unusual, with unusual
items, thus we may conclude that this is supposed to be an
unusual situation. One or both players might seem by such
indications, to be playing ego-games with the other.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/summergo.html
I'm told to "look carefully" for inferences of a few
dragons in this picture. I find two possible answers.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/shang1.html
A "fourth sage" at the right, seems temporarily disinterested
in Go, will not be visible in the "zoom-in" rendition.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/oldgames.html
"Laundry washing" here is associated with reminiscing.
He seems to be looking "off-camera" and there may be one
or two faces in the palm fronds to his right (or left when
viewing the picture).
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/stop.html
In this idyllic little mountain clearing, one notices a
foreground tree with three "wounds" where once were branches
and also three characters gathered around a Go Board. With
a waterfall nearby, however, one would not expect them to be
lost, since it should have been a well-known landmark to any
within walking distance of it. Key to their finding of a
way to proceed was a settling of anxiety about the Go Board,
providing them a "common-ground" on which to base a mutual
decision.
http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/twopoets.html
Well, they're -not- playing Go because the stones are not
yet out of their bowls and instead the central element of
this picture seems to stem from the girl holding the goose
which threatens to escape. A story of one player who is
ready to concentrate yet another distracted.
-----------------------------------------------------o
-
> http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/trapped.html
> Note the simple, almost "Zen" type brush stroke
> to outline the man at the left versus the wretched
> style for the demon on the left, associated also
> with the upended _goban_. "Zen" style shows
> a quality of being carefree, a quality often absent
> from "demon-possessed" Go Players. A person
> understanding "Zen" will not be anxious over Go.
Should read "...for the demon on the right..."
> http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/pine.html
> A dotted-quality indicates how the artist may
> have been "getting carried away" by the dots
> of a _goban_. Here the pine-tree appears to
> be supporting a mountain: the motif of blue
> and orange is reflected also in their kimonos,
> and fronds indicate a southern exposure.
They're Chinese so would not be wearing (Japanese) kimonos.
> http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/sixbelle.html
> Lending a compelling quality to Utamoro's
> work is the naturalness that avoids harsh
> symmetries or perfections: her hair is not
> entirely arranged, the eyes are inexact, the
> long tress in the inset indicates barbering.
She has recently emerged from her bath, the tress not yet worn.
> http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/omen.html
> I am uncertain but it seems she is holding a kind
> of ruling device to set lines or to verify measures
> on the _goban_. Throughout this picture a sense
> of something "being not correct" is conveyed, i.e.
> notice anomalies on the cabinet on the right side.
This picture is difficult, because an "omen" means a sign, but
what if the sign's meaning is difficult to discern? On the side
of the Go Board (typical location to indicate mood in many of these
Japanese prints) we find a curious marking. How does this relate
to her action of comparisons? The face of the player, the "face"
constructed on the Go Board? What would be the meaning there, or
does this denote the meaning itself?
> http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/probsolve.html
> The picture displays six ladies and it seems a seventh
> large figure, possibly male, is half-displayed in the
> right margin to illustrate some imple "life-and-death"
> aspect. Faces on all six ladies seem nondescript and
> identical, even with two dressed identically.
On closer inspection the picture appears to be assembled in a
haphazard fashion, as if by "cut and paste" from other pictures.
To the left notice a stereo system. To the left of that do we
find a rice-bin or a tower computer? :-)
> http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/goblins.html
> Perhaps the Go Board is less terrifying than
> its likely alternatives. :-) He has been
> waiting for his opponent to arrive, and the
> woman who crouches on the far right may
> have been the reason. A tiger is hidden behind
> the lampshade, but in this case who was the
> crouching tiger and who the hidden dragon?
I got this one altogether mixed up: the long sword behind the
player at left identifies him as a "field swordsman" which puts
him in the position of a vassel to his lord who arrives. The
person at far right, despite feminine face, is a "page" (retainer)
of the vassel or lord, seems to hold the sword using a blue hankie.
So the exposed sword here identifies this person as superior of the
two. Both players wear fierce countenances, ready to engage with
their formal altercation over the Go Board. The "Goblins" represent
the vassel's "state of mind" from all of his studies at Go in
prepatration for the arrival of his opponent. He must know not
only how to play strong Go but also how to lose by only a few points
in order to preserve "face" for both of them, thus the "Goblins."
> http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/sumo.html
> One might erroneously suppose here that
> Daidozan Bungoro is going to swing the
> _goban_ at the candle, but instead he is
> merely holding up the board which itself
> is displayed parallel to the candle. Thereby
> the _goban_ is the candle flame of Daidozan
> Bungoro himself.
Daidozan Bungoro isn't going to hit the candle flame to put
it out but swings it about like a fan, because he is so strong.
> http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/mist.html
> As with "mist" the shape seems hidden from whence
> those two prisoner stones had arrived, and at least we
> find "sensible" women not using so many hairpieces.
They're not courtesans, that's why.
> http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/twopoets.html
> Well, they're -not- playing Go because the stones are not
> yet out of their bowls and instead the central element of
> this picture seems to stem from the girl holding the goose
> which threatens to escape. A story of one player who is
> ready to concentrate yet another distracted.
This one threw me for a loop: a boy holds the goose, and he
seems to be missing some essential clothing, but is the player
turned toward him man or woman? I say the distracted player is
female and the goose is allegorical of a "life force." Whether
the stones stay in bowls or not is not essential to the tableau.
- regards
- jb
.
-
>> http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/omen.html
>> I am uncertain but it seems she is holding a kind
>> of ruling device to set lines or to verify measures
>> on the _goban_. Throughout this picture a sense
>> of something "being not correct" is conveyed, i.e.
>> notice anomalies on the cabinet on the right side.
> This picture is difficult, because an "omen" means a sign, but
> what if the sign's meaning is difficult to discern? On the side
> of the Go Board (typical location to indicate mood in many of
> these Japanese prints) we find a curious marking. How does this
> relate to her action of comparisons? The face of the player, the
> "face" constructed on the Go Board? What would be the meaning
> there, or is that the meaning itself?
Her "ruler" is a pipe, but a rather unusually slender pipe,
illustrating a theory-association of smoke running along narrow
lines of the Go Board. The motion of smoke is a straight line
(albeit only vertical) when there are no air currents, thus the
sense conveys one's utmost concentration. Literally the word
"sensei" refers to somebody born earlier, but in the Japanese
culture has obtained a higher degree of respect owing to courtesy
awarded to age, and additional respect when confered as a "title."
>> http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/goblins.html
>> Perhaps the Go Board is less terrifying than
>> its likely alternatives. :-) He has been
>> waiting for his opponent to arrive, and the
>> woman who crouches on the far right may
>> have been the reason. A tiger is hidden behind
>> the lampshade, but in this case who was the
>> crouching tiger and who the hidden dragon?
> I got this one altogether mixed up: the long sword behind the
> player at left identifies him as a "field swordsman" which puts
> him in the position of a vassel to his lord who arrives. The
> person at far right, despite feminine face, is a "page"
> (retainer) of the vassel or lord, seems to hold the sword using a
> blue hankie. So the exposed sword here identifies this person as
> superior of the two. Both players wear fierce countenances,
> ready to engage with their formal altercation over the Go Board.
> The "Goblins" represent the vassel's "state of mind" from all of
> his studies at Go in prepatration for the arrival of his
> opponent. He must know not only how to play strong Go but also
> how to lose by only a few points in order to preserve "face" for
> both of them, thus the "Goblins."
With a bit of resizing/resampling and sharpening toward hi-res
it's more clearly seen that the sword held by the "page" (retainer)
is still sheathed, meaning that the arriving Lord brought two swords;
one is smaller which he does not leave with the "page." Holding it
with blue cloth indicates the sword was not belonging to the "page."
Now one could ask why one sword is left behind and one sword is kept
when he enters the playing room. Perhaps it was customary, or for
purposes of portrayal is deliberate to indicate peaceful intention.
>> http://igs.joyjoy.net/English/art/twopoets.html
>> Well, they're -not- playing Go because the stones are not
>> yet out of their bowls and instead the central element of
>> this picture seems to stem from the girl holding the goose
>> which threatens to escape. A story of one player who is
>> ready to concentrate yet another distracted.
> This one threw me for a loop: a boy holds the goose, and he seems
> to be missing some essential clothing, but is the player turned
> toward him man or woman? I say the distracted player is female
> and the goose is allegorical of a "life force." Whether the
> stones stay in bowls or not is not essential to the tableau.
Clothing style establishes the distracted feminine player as
instead male, who for some reason is decorated with a hairpiece.
Thereby a sexual ambiguity was partly the message conveyed here.