Chen Yin
Late Ming dynasty, China (17th century)
Tangible Cultural Property, designated by Sakata city
Chen Yin (date of birth and death unknown) was an artist-monk of China’s Ming Dynasty (from around the middle of the 17th century). Known as a master of portraying Kannon, the Bodhisattva of Mercy, the Southern School painters Tanomura Chikuden and Chokunyū went on to paint Kannon in the style of Chen Yin. His Buddhist imagery and portraiture are extremely realistic, and are said to be the origin point for the paintings of the Ōbaku school of Zen Buddhism.
This painting portrays a white-clad Kannon and a page painted in shadowy, subtle colors, the Bodhisattva’s facial expression full of compassion.