Minneapolis Institute of Art

Six Scenes from the Tale of Genji

Japan

Date

18th century

Medium

Six-panel folding screen, ink, color, and gold on gilded paper

Department

Asian Art

Institution

Minneapolis Institute of Art

This screen features six scenes from the first 34 chapters of The Tale of Genji, ranging from Genji’s youth to age 41, aligning more or less with what is considered the first of three parts of the Tale. The scenes, which are each framed by gold clouds, architectural motifs, or both, are not presented sequentially. Upper right: Chapter 1, “The Paulownia Pavilion” In Genji’s coming-of-age ceremony, 12-year-old Genji sits on a platform with a small audience before him, while his father, the emperor, sits behind him but is mostly concealed by gold clouds. Lower right: Chapter 3, “The Cicada Shell” From a veranda, a teenage Genji spies on two young girls playing a board game indoors. Genji is in pursuit of one of them, but she catches a whiff of Genji’s perfume and runs away. Genji instead forces himself on the girl’s companion. Lower middle: Chapter 7, “Beneath the Autumn Leaves” Genji, still a teenager, performs an autumn dance with his friend and sometime rival, Tō no Chūjō. Upper left: Chapter 14, “The Pilgrimage to Sumiyoshi” Genji is on a pilgrimage to the grand shrine at Sumiyoshi. Unbeknownst to Genji, one of his former lovers arrives by boat, but the magnificence of Genji’s entourage puts her to shame, so she retreats without announcing herself. Lower left: Chapter 23, “The Warbler's First Song” Genji exchanges New Year’s greetings with the women living at his mansion. Upper middle: Chapter 34, “Spring Shoots I” Genji reluctantly marries his young niece, the Third Princess, who is soon thereafter raped by an acquaintance named Kashiwagi and gives birth to an illegitimate son that will be raised as Genji’s. This pivotal chapter sets the stage for the final 20 chapters of the Tale. Japan, Asia

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