An owl staris our from the abstract silver covering this painting by Tanahashi Fumiko enclosed in the original signed wooden box. Ink, applied silver and gold on paper framed in an unusual cloth mounting with turned dark-wood rollers. It comes with a Futomaki, a special device which wraps around the rollers for safety in storage, reserved for only the highest quality mountings. The scroll is 67.6 x 94 cm (26-1/2 x 37 inches) and is in excellent condition.
Tanahashi Fumiko (1932–2012) was born in Gifu City and studied Nihonga painting at Musashino Art School, enrolling in 1953. From 1981 to 1999, she regularly exhibited at the Gendai Joryū Bijutsuten (Contemporary Women Artists’ Exhibition). That same year, she was selected as a member of the 8th Sōgaten, a progressive open-call exhibition for Nihonga. After relocating to Chiba City in 1997, she turned her artistic focus toward seascapes. In 2000, she was appointed executive director of the Chiba Prefectural Art Association, and in 2005 received official commendation from Chiba Prefecture for her contributions to art education. Tanahashi is known for her distinctive works featuring birds of prey such as owls, as well as explorations of the human form. Her contributions to the Sōgaten embodied a bold and innovative approach to contemporary Nihonga. She passed away from stomach cancer in 2012 at the age of 80.
