An early work depicting Evening Primrose by Fujimori Seiun dating from the late Taisho to early Showa eras, c. 1925. Pigment on silk in a border of momigami crushed paper with rosewood rollers. The scroll is 68.5 x 185.5 cm (27 x 73 inches) and is in overall fine condition, with a repair to the paper border on the right side of the painting.
Fujimori Seiun (1901-1989) was born in Nagano and showed a fondness for drawing from an early age. With arrangements of his elder sister, upon graduating from elementary school, he went to Tokyo, where he worked in a temple in Ueno while studying painting under Ikegami Shuho (1874–1944). In 1927 (Showa 2), at the age of twenty-six, he entered the Tokyo Fine Arts School (now Tokyo University of the Arts). From his second to fifth year he was a scholarship student, and at graduation he was chosen as the valedictorian, delivering the farewell address on behalf of his class. While a student there he was first accepted into the Teiten (Imperial Art Exhibition), and would go on to be selected a total of eleven times through to the Nitten (post-war) era. He also exhibited in the inaugural exhibition of the Dainichi Bijutsuin, an art society led by his mentor at the art school, Yūki Somei (1875–1957), from whom he received considerable guidance. His career promised even greater success, however, during the Pacific War, his submissions to major national exhibitions became infrequent. His final showing on the central art stage was at the 8th Nitten in 1952 (Showa 27). Thereafter, he divided his time between his studio in Tokyo and his hometown of Suwa, serving as a juror for local exhibitions such as the Suwa Exhibition and the Nagano Prefectural Exhibition, and contributing to the development of art in his home region. He painted the sliding door panels (fusuma-e) at Teishoin Temple, where he often stayed during his visits to Suwa.
