Shugetsu Tokan 秋月等観

秋月等観 Shugetsu Tokan (active around 1490)
Painting monk of the late Muromachi period. Born in Satsuma Province (Kagoshima Prefecture). Born into the Takagi family, who served the Shimazu clan of Satsuma. He became a monkhood and went to Yamaguchi, Studied painting under Sesshu in Suo Province. He was also encouraged by Sesshu to travel to Ming Dynasty China and returned to Satsuma from Ming Dynasty China in 1492. This led him to use the painting name Nyutou Shugetsu. After returning to Japan, he did much to popularize Sesshu-style ink painting in the Kyushu region. His composition and brushwork are plainer than Sesshu's, and his coloring is richer, showing a unique style of painting. A considerable number of his works have been handed down to us, and all of them are direct successors of Sesshu's style. The brushwork is characterized by its hardness and emphasis on form.