Description
The powerful figures of a dragon and tiger dominate the large canvas of these folding screens. The theme of this painting can be summed up in a Japanese phrase that translates as 'standoff between dragon and tiger.' Though the dragon may be an imaginary beast while the tiger actually exists, they were both venerated as mighty creatures and were often painted together in a set.
From olden times, dragons were said to cause clouds and tigers, wind, with clouds and wind associated with each beast. On the screen to your right, a sharp-clawed dragon glares down on us from the heavens. The swelling clouds seem to surge from right to left. On the left-hand screen a tiger crouches down and strikes an intimidating pose. The bamboo blades above are also depicted swaying from right to left. It seems the winds are blowing violently from the right-hand screen to the left. With its dynamic sense of movement and huge motifs that jut out of the screens, this pair of screen paintings aptly expresses the era's penchant for magnificence and grandeur.
Data source
ColBase
"ColBase: Integrated Collections Database of the National Institutes for Cultural Heritage, Japan" is a service that enables a multi-database search of the collections in the four national museums (To...
Contents holder/Provider
Aggregator
National Institutes for Cultural Heritage
The National Institutes for Cultural Heritage (NICH) comprise four National Museums (Tokyo National Museum, Kyoto National Museum, Nara National Museum, and Kyushu National Museum) and two National Research Institutes for Cultural Properties (Tokyo National Research Institute for Cultural Properties, and Nara National Research Institute for Cultural Properties), as well as the International Research Centre for Intangible Cultural Heritage in the Asia-Pacific Region (IRCI) in Sakai City, for a total of seven institutions.
Last updated
March 16, 2026