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Okada Saburosuke
1869.01.12~1939.09.23
Birthplace / Saga Prefecture, Japan

Western style painter Okada Saburosuke was born at Kyushu, Japan in 1869, and lived through both the Meiji and Shōwa periods. His childhood name was Yoshisaburo, and he was the son of a former vassal of the Saga Domain, Ishio Takamoto. At the age of eighteen, he became the adopted son of Okada Shouzou.

He studied Western painting at the painting studio of Soyama Yukihiko. Okada continued to study under Horie Masaaki, who inherited the studio after the death of Soyama and renamed the studio to Taikokan. In 1893, through Kume Keiichiro’s introduction, he met Kuroda Seiki who had recently returned to Japan. Okada's talent was deeply recognized by Kuroda, and entered the Tenshin Dojo studio. In 1896, he joined the Hakubakai that Kuroda established and, along with Fujishima Takeji, was appointed assistant professor in the Western Painting Department at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts.

In April 1897, Okada studied abroad in France under a scholarship from the Ministry of Education. Okada studied luminarist techniques under Kuroda Seiki’s teacher Raphaël Collin (1850-1916), and inherited his elegant style.

In 1902, after returning to Japan, he became a full professor at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts. After the Ministry of Education Art Exhibition was established in 1907, he served as a juror each year and continued to present his work, remaining active in government-sponsored exhibitions. In 1919, he was appointed as a member of the Imperial Art Academy, and served as the director of the Western Painting Division at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts in 1924.

In 1937, Okada received the Order of Cultural Merit, the highest honor in the Japanese cultural world. Overall, his art career showed an unusually smooth progression. Okada’s painting subjects included both landscapes and portraits, and he was especially good at painting portraits of women. Under his brush, women were portrayed with warm skin textures, elegant features, and delicate traits. In 1907 he won the first prize of the Tokyo Industrial Exhibition for Image of a Woman (Purple tone). Later, he exhibited Women in Red, Japanese Bush Clover, Portrait of Marquess Ookuma’s Wife, establishing his reputation in painting portraits of women.

In addition to his work in painting, he also studied applied art and collected many handicrafts, such as porcelain and glass, in his house. His another contribution to fine arts education began in 1912, when he and Fujishima Takeji established the Hongō Western Painting Institute (later renamed Hongō Painting Institute), which had a great influence on Taiwanese artists who were studying in Japan at the time.

-- http://chenchengpo.asdc.sinica.edu.tw/index

Portrait_of_a_Lady

Okada Saburosuke 岡田三郎助: Portrait of a Lady 婦人像, Oil on canvas, w615 x h733 cm. 1907. Bridgestone Museum of Art, Ishibashi Foundation

https://www.google.com/culturalinstitute/asset-viewer/portrait-of-a-lady/ngGuyZfjQAotaQ?hl=en

Structured Data

岡田三郎助
ISNI
Okada Saburōsuke
Okada Saburousuke
Additional Name: Yoshisaburō
Painter, Professor
Okada Saburōsuke (Japanese: 岡田 三郎助; 12 January 1869, Saga – 23 September 1939, Tokyo) was a Japanese painter in the Yōga style and a Professor at the "Tōkyō Bijutsu Gakkō" (School of Fine Arts); precursor of the Tokyo University of the Arts.
Born: 1869-01-12
Saga Prefecture, Japan
Died: 1939-09-23
Tokyo, Japan
Nationality: Japanese

Relations:

Parent: Ishio Takamoto
Step-parent: Okada Shouzou
Alumni of: Soyama Yukihiko's studio
Alumni of: Taikokan studio
Alumni of: Tenshin Dojo studio
Colleague of: Fujishima Takeji
Member of: Hakubakai
Member of: Imperial Art Academy
Follows: Soyama Yukihiko
Follows: Kume Keiichiro
Follows: Horie Masaaki
Follows: Kuroda Seiki
Follows: Raphaël Collin
Taught at: Tokyo School of Fine Arts
Taught at: Hongō Painting Institute

Important Roles:

Creator of: Portrait of a Lady 婦人像
Founder of: Hongō Painting Institute
Award and recognition: In 1937, Okada received the 1st Order of Cultural Merit, the highest honor in the Japanese cultural world.
Award and recognition: In 1907 he won the first prize of the Tokyo Industrial Exhibition for Image of a Woman (Purple tone).

Sources and references

 

© Marcia Lei Zeng for Academia Sinica Center for Digital Cultures