"Stable Jump" Two-Panel Japanese Byobu Screen

Lightweight and portable byobu, or Japanese wind screens, were common features of Japanese homes, protecting from drafts and defining living areas. This two-panel screen made in 1900, depicts a stylized representation of a stable painted in a delicate palette with keen detail. Rearing and bowing with pent-up energy, the horses are barely contained by their stalls in contrast to the grooms, one of whom dozes off as the other goes about his daily chores. Using the entire expanse of the screen, the artist enlivens the scene with the rhythmic progression of the horses’ positions and unites the composition with the deft use of negative space that defines the screen’s upper portion.