Kenya Shimizu - Tiger Tattoo
This picture makes an interesting comparison in style with my recent post on Okutsu.
A simple, male warrior figure set against a textured background and using a similar palette. The composition approach is quite different, slightly unbalanced, which gives a more dynamic feeling. Personally I prefer to see the body rather than the tattoo but the picture would be far less striking without it.
Thanks to Adonis Art for the image
In Japanese traditon, tattoos are associated with common 'day laborers', who lead a precarious existence. Atchery (kyu-jitsu) on the other hand, was a pursuit that required leaisure and was largely pursued by both the court nobility of the Heian Era and the bushi (samurai) class of the Kamakura (and later) Era. The juxtaposition of these contrasting elements certainly adds a soupcon of taboo-breaking by combining both ends of the cultural spectrum nto a single image. To traditional-minded Japanese, this image would strike them as bizzare. Only modern Japanese sesibilities could ever put the two together.
ReplyDeleteOn further note, the arrow should be level; not angle up slightly.
Thanks for this interesting contribution.
ReplyDeleteOn a further technical note, the gripping of the nock (the right hand) is entirely Western. Either a thumb ring or shooting glove would be used on the right. That would be an interesting addition, to be nearly naked, yet have the gloved right hand encased in leather, and ready to stroke his own biomechanical 'arrow'. Yoowwww!
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