Konoshima Ōkoku

Place: Kyoto

Born: 1877

Death: 1938

Biography:

Konoshima Ōkoku, also known as Bunjirō 文治郎, was a Japanese painter born in Kyoto in 1877 and died in 1938. He was a leading master of modern Japanese painting, representing the Kyoto Circle of Painters. Ōkoku studied under Imao Keinen and won prizes at each of the first six Ministry of Education Art Exhibitions. He was a Nihonga painter active in the Shijō school from the Meiji period through the early Shōwa period. His works often depicted animals, historical subjects, and scenes from daily life, and were exhibited at the Bunten and Teiten exhibitions. In recent years, Ōkoku’s popularity has grown beyond the borders of Japanese-style painting fans, particularly for his animal paintings.