Musashi Miyamoto the Artist.

After attaining perfection in swordsmanship Musashi Miyamoto turned to calligraphy, poetry, sculpture and painting, applying his exemplary insight and resourcefulness. Even though the “Way of the warrior does not include other ways,” says Musashi, “if you know the Way broadly you will see it in everything.” His multifaceted talent is evidenced by his extant works.

Musashi’s peculiarity as a painter was his powerful and direct style and the economy of his strokes was just amazing. He excelled in suiboku-ga or sumi-e (which is monochrome ink painting). His greatest contribution as a painter could perhaps be his paintings of birds like Koboku meikakuzu (‘Shrike on a Dead Tree’), and Rozanzu (‘Wild Geese Among Reeds’).

Later in his life, Musashi said in his Go Rin No Sho that he didn’t feel the need for a teacher in any field when he applied the principle of strategy to the Ways of various arts and crafts. It was by creating masterpieces of calligraphy and classic ink painting that Musashi proved that idea.

"Musashi’s peculiarity as a painter was his powerful and direct style and the economy of strokes was just amazing."

What characterize his paintings are the efficient use of ink washes and his unique and economical way of using brush strokes. He became a master of the ‘broken ink’ school of landscapes. He later applied that to other subjects like Koboku meikakuzu (‘Kingfisher on Withered Branch’, part of a triptych whose other items being ‘Hotei Walking’ and ‘Sparrow on Bamboo’), ‘Hotei Watching a Cockfight’ and Rozanzu (‘Wild Geese Among Reeds’).