OGAWA HARITSU: A VERY RARE LACQUER PAINTING DEPICTING THE THUNDER GOD RAIJIN

By Ogawa Haritsu (Ritsuo, 1663-1747), signed Ukanshi Ritsuo rokujuni hitsu with seal Ritsuo
Japan, dated 1724

Published: Resonance of Wa - The Japanese Spirit. Casal Collection, 2025, p. 291.

Executed in ink and takamaki-e (raised gold lacquer), this dynamic lacquer painting depicts Raijin, the thunder god, in a powerful stance atop a dark cloud, with den-den daiko drums framing his body. He holds two thunderbolt drumsticks, one releasing a bolt of lightning, executed in fine gold lacquer, which travels across the composition. His fierce expression and fluid movement are framed by a luxuriant, curling mane and flowing ribbons that envelop his body. The scene is strikingly energetic, with the use of ink for subtle details and the takamaki-e technique lending the god’s form a sculptural, three-dimensional quality. Signed in the lower left corner Ukanshi RITSUO rokujuni hitsu [painted by Ukanshi Ritsuo at the age of 62] and sealed Ritsuo.

SIZE of the image 33.1 x 49.1 cm, SIZE incl. frame 45.8 x 76.7 cm

Provenance: Ex-Collection of Ugo Alfons Casal. Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts, bequeathed from the above and subsequently deaccessioned in 2021. Ugo Alfons Casal, of Swiss-German origin, was born in Florence, Italy, in 1888. He moved to Japan in 1918, working first at the Osaka branch of George H. McFadden & Brothers and then at F. S. Morse & Co. in Kobe from 1920 to 1938. Primarily involved in the cotton trade, Casal spent most of his life in Kobe, with a few years in Yokohama, until his death in 1964. Throughout his time in Japan, he remained passionate about collecting Japanese art. In the late 1930s, amidst deteriorating relations between Japan and the United States, Casal planned to move his collection to America. However, the outbreak of the Pacific War in 1941 halted this plan, and the collection was instead stored in wooden crates at Kobe Port. With his personal connections, Casal successfully moved the collection to the Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts, where it was kept in storage during the wartime and postwar years. After his death, the collection was bequeathed to the museum, where it remains one of the most valuable bodies of works in Japan.
Condition: The lacquer in excellent condition with minor expected wear. Minor spots and soiling. The mounting with typical wear, traces of use, minor losses, and some tears with associated repairs. The wood frame with typical wear.

Ogawa Haritsu, known outside Japan as Ritsuo, was among the first lacquer artists in Japan to establish an independent reputation outside the hereditary craft dynasties of Kyoto, Edo, and Kanazawa. Haritsu began his career as a haiku poet, later turning to lacquer art in middle age, where his early training in painting informed his innovative use of lacquer. The present work beautifully fuses his painterly background with his brilliant understanding of lacquer, creating a striking and dynamic representation of Raijin. His use of takamaki-e in conjunction with traditional ink painting results in an artwork that feels both fluid and sculptural, combining the best of both mediums.

The imagery of Raijin, the deity of thunder and lightning, reflects his typical iconography — depicted fiercely, standing on a cloud and striking his drums, with the swirling dynamic lines evoking the violent power of storms. Haritsu likely drew inspiration from the works of Tawaraya Sotatsu, a contemporary painter renowned for his dramatic depictions of Raijin and Fujin. Sotatsu's influence can be seen in the boldness and energy of this lacquer painting, which recalls the Raijin and Fujin screens from the Rinpa school, where Sotatsu frequently depicted these storm gods in a similarly dynamic manner.

Literature comparison:
Compare a related screen painting of Bugaku Dancers, by Ogawa Haritsu, though executed as an ink painting and not in lacquer like the present lot, the design based on a painting by Tawaraya Sotatsu, at Bonhams, Fine Japanese Works of Art, 25 March 2010, New York, lot 2160.