untitled (bottle goard with cat and butterfly)

Jimmy Tsutomu Mirikitani, artist

1920–2012

untitled (bottle goard with cat and butterfly), date unknown

Where object was made: United States

Material/technique: drawing; ballpoint pen; colored pencil; paper

Dimensions:
Sheet/Paper Dimensions (Height x Width): 61 x 45.5 cm
Mat Dimensions (Height x Width): 81.28 x 60.96 cm

Credit line: Collection of Linda Hattendorf, Taos, New Mexico

Accession number: EL2024.158

On display: Perkins Central Court

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Street Nihonga: The Art of Jimmy Tsutomu Mirikitani

Mirikitani’s favorite motifs include cats, birds-and-flowers, tigers, dragons, fish, Japanese castles, and landscapes. While these subjects reflect common themes in Nihonga and East Asian painting, many are also connected to his childhood memories of Hiroshima and Japan. For example, the persimmons in his drawings are almost always Gionbō, a variety native to Hiroshima; the schools of fish recall the rich marine life of the Seto Inland Sea (Seto Naikai); and carp are widely recognized as symbols of Hiroshima and may allude to the city’s destruction. Mirikitani often recounted that, after the atomic bombing, only a large carp survived amid the ruins. In this way, his lively depictions of animals, fish, and plants are closely tied both to his artistic lineage and to his memories of Hiroshima.