Poshichi Rou is a born artist and comes from a family of creatives. Their grandmother studied art at university level and went on to teach art as a career. Their grandfather ran a little framing shop in rural Japan.
So it's no surprise that Poshichi was drawn to art, so to speak, and started sketching and painting at a young age.
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Poshichi attended an art high school but soon became discouraged.
“A poster I spent the most time on, was the only one not selected for a contest,” the artist told spoon-tamago.com, adding that they really don’t have any fond memories of that time.
Sadly, Poshichi gave up their dream of becoming a professional artist and opted instead for a boring, "regular" office job. Thankfully, a friend encouraged the budding artist to continue drawing in their spare time.
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Poshichi tells the Japanese art, design and culture blog that life was dark during those years.
"I hadn’t found life enjoyable, my days seemed unrealistic, and I had no hope for the future," they said. "I wished the days would just pass by quickly, and I painted pictures that expressed these dark, gloomy feelings."
But as fate would have it, everything changed about two years ago...
Poshichi decided to adopt a rescue cat, and both their lives changed for the better.
"I know it’s cliche, but ever since adopting my cat, I’ve found many moments of joy," revealed the artist. That cat is featured in many of Poshichi's artworks, sometimes in playful settings. Other times, in more serious and reflective poses. The artist and their cat combine to bring whimsical, magical and surreal vibes.
Poshichi's style is based on an ancient style of traditional Japanese painting known as nihonga. The word is a general term for traditional Japanese painting, and literally means "Japanese painting."
"Now in common use, this term originated during the Meiji period, to distinguish Japanese painting from Western-style oil painting," explains the Yamatane Museum site. "The distinction between Western-style oil painting and nihonga is thus, broadly speaking, the difference in the painting materials used."
The site adds that while some would argue that anything a Japanese artist paints is nihonga, "the distinction based on materials continues to be used."
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The painting styles used in nihonga have evolved for over a thousand years. And when it comes to the materials used, according to the museum, the support is paper, silk, wood, or plaster.
Sumi ink, mineral pigments, white gofun (a white pigment made from pulverized seashells), animal or vegetable coloring materials, and other natural pigments are then applied to the canvas (or support), using nikawa, which is an animal glue, as the adhesive. Some artists incorporate gold and other metals in their paintings.
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The museum reveals that these materials are difficult to work with.
"Mastering the necessary techniques requires considerable time and determination," reads the site. "Artists continue to use them, however, because the resulting nihonga style suits the natural features of Japan and the Japanese aesthetic sense and spiritual qualities."
