This site is a web media that delivers all kinds of trivia, from sightseeing and gourmet spots in the six Tohoku prefectures to local, customs, and history.
The Odano family residence still remains on Kakunodate Samurai Residence Street
In a corner of Kakunodate Samurai Residence Street in Kakunodate, Senboku City, Akita Prefecture, stands the Odano family, who were vassals of the Kubota Domain (Akita Domain)
The Odano family was a vassal of the Satake clan, lords of the Kubota domain, from when they were feudal lords of Hitachi Province (Ibaraki Prefecture), before they came to Akita, and followed them to Akita. They were later posted to Kakunodate, and became vassals of the Satake North family, a branch of the main Satake family (the Satake clan, lords of the Kubota domain). From this Odano family, in the mid-Edo period, came a man who will leave a lasting name in the form of Odano Naotake (1749-1780)
The Odano family home was destroyed in the Great Kakunodate Fire of 1900 (Meiji 33), but was quickly rebuilt, preserving the appearance of a samurai residence. It has been designated a historic site by Senboku City
Public Transportation: Approximately 20 minutes on foot from Akita Shinkansen, JR Tazawako Line, Akita Uchiriku Longitudinal Railway Kakunodate Station
Car/Approximately 39 minutes from the Akita Expressway Kyowa IC via National Routes 341 and 46
Google Map
Gennai Hiraga was called to Akita to help rebuild the mine
When Naotake was a young man, the Kubota domain was in dire straits due to declining income from its mines, an important source of revenue. At the time, the domain's mines were based on outdated mining methods and smelting techniques, resulting in poor quality ore. No new veins were discovered, and production volumes were declining. Satake Shozan (1748-1785), the seventh domain lord, then called Hiraga Gennai (1728-1779), who had been managing a mine in Edo (present-day Tokyo), to Akita to teach him new mining and smelting techniques
Hiraga Gennai is known as a doctor skilled in Dutch studies (Western thinking that was introduced to Japan via the Netherlands during the isolation period), an inventor, haiku poet, writer, painter, and other diversely talented individual, but he also studied geology and refining methods in Nagasaki, and was also a mining engineer, managing mines in Hyogo Prefecture and Chichibu (Saitama Prefecture). (There are various sources regarding Hiraga Gennai's life, but this section refers to sources from Sanuki City, Kagawa Prefecture, his hometown.)
Odano Naotake, a samurai from Kakunodate whose talent blossomed under the auspices of Hiraga Gennai
Innai Silver Mine (Yuzawa City), which would later grow into the largest silver mine in Japan Ani Mine (Kitaakita City).
On his way there, he stayed in Kakunodate with the Goi family, who were merchants purveying to the domain. The Goi family had magnificent sliding screen paintings, and upon learning that the artist was Odano Naotake, a 24-year-old samurai who lived in Kakunodate and served as a retainer of the Kubota domain, he immediately invited him to stay. Gennai was captivated by Naotake's talent, and taught him Western painting techniques that he had learned in Nagasaki, such as shading and perspective, which were not present in Japanese paintings such as the Kano school and ukiyo-e. It is said that he also showed him illustrations from Dutch books (Dutch or Western European books) that he had owned, to show him what Western painting was like
Public Transportation: Approximately 20 minutes on foot from Akita Shinkansen, JR Tazawako Line, Akita Uchiriku Longitudinal Railway Kakunodate Station
Car/Approximately 39 minutes from the Akita Expressway Kyowa IC via National Routes 341 and 46
Google Map
Just eight months after meeting Gennai, Naotake was in charge of the illustrations for Kaitai Shinsho
Kaitai Shinsho (1774) Collection: National Diet Library
That same year, good fortune struck Naotake, who was ordered to Edo by his domain. He visited Gennai, who had returned to Edo from the Kubota domain, and interacted with Dutch scholars, learning about Western painting from various Dutch books. His talent blossomed in a short space of time, and within a year he was responsible for Kaitai Shinsho and others.
Illustrations from Kaitai Shinsho by Odano Naotake. Collection: National Diet Library
Kaitai Shinsho was "translated by Sugita Genpaku, Maeno Ryotaku (1723-1803) and others from the Dutch translation of the anatomical book Tabulae Anatomicae, written by the German physician Krums, and published in 1774. It was Japan's first fully translated medical book, and is known for being the first time that words used today, such as "nerve," "cartilage," and "artery," were coined" (transcribed with some additions from the Agency for Cultural Affairs Cultural Properties Online). It was a groundbreaking book for its time
"Akita Ranga" where the lord of the Kubota domain and his retainers gathered
Odano Naotake's "Tang Taizong: Flower and Bird Landscape." The central of the three paintings is the second Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, Taizong. The figures have shading, earning Naotake high praise for his portraits. The flower and bird paintings on either side also exemplify the characteristics of Akita Ranga. Collection: Akita Museum of Modern Art
Naotake returned to Akita in 1777. It was the feudal lord Satake Shozan who sent Naotake to Edo, who himself had a deep knowledge of painting and was a painter himself. Upon Naotake's return from Edo, Satake Shozan immediately studied the Dutch painting techniques that Naotake had mastered, and later had Naotake accompany him when he went to Edo on his alternate attendance system. The painting style that Naotake and Shozan had mastered, which incorporated Japan's first Western painting techniques, spread mainly among the samurai of the Kubota domain, and later became a school known as "Akita Dutch Painting," producing many magnificent works
Satake Shozan's "Toad Immortal" is inspired by the masterpiece "Toad Ironclad" by Gan Hui, a painter from the Southern Song to Yuan dynasties (13th-14th centuries) in China, who is said to have had a great influence on Japanese painting. Collection: Akita City Senshu Museum of Art
Naotake died at the age of 32. Five years later, Shobonozan also died, and the Akita Ranga movement ceased its activities, having lost its central figure
The honeymoon between Shobozan and Naotake came to an abrupt end. For reasons that are unclear, Shobozan placed Naotake under house arrest in the winter of 1779. In despair, Naotake passed away in May of the following year, 1780. Naotake was 32 years old, and there are theories that he died of illness or poisoning, but the truth is unknown
Ostrich "Sakuzan Satake Sketchbook." A three-volume illustrated guide to plants and animals that Satake Shozan had his vassals draw. Most of the illustrations are believed to have been done by Odano Naotake. Collection: Akita City Senshu Museum of Art
It is said that Shobozan lost interest in painting Western paintings after Naotake's death. Shobozan, who was also originally in poor health, passed away five years after Naotake's death, at the age of 38. With Shobozan's death, the creative activity of "Akita Ranga" was cut short after just seven years, as it lost its central figure
Satake Yoshimi's "Red Plum Blossoms and Camellias." Satake Yoshimi was the 13th head of the Satake clan in Kakunodate, and was the direct superior of Odano Naotake. He was the same age as Naotake, and many of his Akita Ranga paintings remain. Collection: National Museum
It is thought that many of the "Akita Ranga" works were produced when Naotake and Shobozan, who were visiting Edo on alternate attendance, were in Edo, but their period of activity was so short that they were completely forgotten after Shobozan's death. However, the Western painting techniques established by Naotake were also taught to Shiba Kokan (1747-1818) in Edo, apart from "Akita Ranga," and contributed to the maturation of ukiyo-e and Japanese painting
Odano Naotake's "Mount Fuji." This painting depicts Mount Fuji from the south. This work shows a good sense of perspective. Collection: Akita Museum of Modern Art
Hirafuku Hyakuho, the man who made the forgotten Akita Ranga known to the world
Akita Ranga, whose activities in the Kubota domain had ceased, was forgotten for a long time. It was the Japanese painter Hirafuku Hyakusui (1877-1933) who brought these buried works back to light, awakening them from a 50-year slumber just over 100 years ago
Hyakusui conducted research over 30 years, and as a culmination of his work, he published a book on Akita Ranga entitled The Dawn of Japanese Western PaintingShinobazu Pond " was discovered, and in 1968 it was designated an Important Cultural Property due to its splendor and high cultural value, bringing Akita Ranga into general recognition.
Hirafuku Hyakusui was born in Kakunodate, and his father was Hirafuku Suian (1844-1890), known as a master of modern Japanese painting. He learned painting from his father from a young age, and after his father's death, he began painting full-time. He advocated naturalism and realism, and left behind many works. The Hirafuku Memorial Museum , named after Suian and Hyakusui, was built in Kakunodate, and exhibits works by local artists, including father and son Suian and Hyakusui.
December to March: 9:00 to 16:30 (last entrance at 16:00)
Closed: New Year's holiday (December 28th to January 4th) * January 1st is a special opening day, and every Monday during the winter period (December to March) * There are temporary closures when changing exhibits
Admission fee: Adults (high school students and above) 500 yen, children (elementary and junior high school students) 300 yen, children under 6 years old free
Public transportation: Akita Shinkansen, JR Tazawako Line, Akita Nairiku Jukan Railway, approximately 25 minutes on foot from Kakunodate Station
By car: Approximately 40 minutes from Omagari IC on the Akita Expressway via National Route 1025, or approximately 1 hour and 15 minutes from Morioka IC on the Tohoku Expressway
Google Map
Stayed for four months. Hiraga Gennai's achievements in Akita go beyond "Akita Ranga."
Hiraga Gennai was known as a free spirit and an eccentric man, and lived a free life in Edo, but in his native Sanuki (Kagawa Prefecture), he was apparently a servant for the Takamatsu domain. He went to Nagasaki on orders from the Takamatsu domain, where he came into contact with Western culture. Gennai was an incredible man who dabbled in many things and made the most of them, but he was particularly knowledgeable about Dutch studies, and as part of that he learned the techniques of Dutch painting (Western painting). It is unclear who taught him, but it is said that he learned the techniques of Dutch painting on his own by studying Dutch studies books and art books
In addition to Akita Ranga, other things that Gennai was involved with in Akita include Ani ware and Shiraiwa ware. Furthermore, the Kamihinokinai Paper Balloon Festival (Kamihinoki, Nishiki-cho, Semboku City, an intangible folk cultural property designated by the city of Semboku) held in Hinokinai, Nishiki-cho, Semboku City during the Lunar New Year (Koshogatsu) is said to have originated from a game that applied the principles of hot air balloons, which Gennai taught to children.
My love of travel grew, and I used to write a travel magazine, and now I'm a travel writer for the web. During my research, I visited all 47 prefectures in Japan, mainly in the Tohoku region, but my fun part is soaking in hot springs and experiencing traditional Japanese culture such as old townscapes, lifestyles, and performing arts and crafts.
![4550228_m](https://jp.neft.asia/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/4550228_m-150x150.jpg.webp "Hot springs gush out in a place where there are no volcanoes! "Yuzawa Geopark" where you can see the mystery of the earth up close [Akita Prefecture]")
