Japan: Four Gentlemen

Japan: The Four Gentlemen
The Four Gentlemen are the four plants that are needed to be mastered in order to become a master sumi`e painter. To master each plant takes years of study under excellent tutelage. Each plant has certain brush strokes needed to complete it in the sumi`e style. As you complete each plant you build on the brush strokes mastered and learn new techniques for the next, more complicated plant. We also learned how the Japanese style of painting creates asymmetrical balance, creating empty space, and simplicity. The Four Gentlemen are bamboo, the wild orchid, the plum blossom branch, and the chrysanthemum. Presented here are 3rd graders that are learning sumi`e painting at Gordon-Bibb Elementary, 2005.

Bamboo - The First Gentleman
Bamboo is the basic of the Four Gentlemen because it employs pulling the brush to build the sections of bamboo. The tip of the brush is then used to accent the breaks. The leaves were drawn by pulling the tip, applying pressure to the brush, and then lifting up to thin the outer tip of the leaf.
Preparing to paint the 1st Gentleman, Bamboo, by dipping their FUDE ("Foo-day" - Brush) into the SUMI ("Soo-me" - Ink).	Creating the long leaves with a lift of the fude.
The Principal from Benjamin Davis Elementary, Margaret Greer came by to try her hand at the sumi`e painting of the bamboo.	Jon and Suruchi sharing what they liked about their bamboo paintings.
Students sharing their bamboo paintings.
The Wild Orchid - The Second Gentleman
The students used the techniques used in creating the bamboo and the leaves and used it in creating the wild orchid. Students worked on finessing the beauty of the turning leaves and the gentle petals. We tried cleaning the brush and adding a touch of sumi on the tip to change the value of the leaves.
There is a lot of variety in our wild orchids!
Just look at what we have learned in one class on two of the Four Gentlemen.
Sara in Mrs. Davis' class Seth in Mrs. Fleischauer's class Chandler also in Mrs. Fleischauer's class.
The Last Two of the Four Gentlemen - The Chrysanthemum and the Plum Blossom Branch
The final two Gentlemen were both beautiful as well as challenging. The Chrysanthemum

Please check back in a few weeks to get the latest on the Four Gentlemen from our 3rd grade artists! Click Mona to take you back to our East Asian Arts page!