Keibun

Matsumura Keibun (Japanese:松村 景文; (1779, Kyōto - 25 May 1843, Kyōto) was a Japanese painter.

He was half-brother to Matsumura Goshun, founder of the Shijō school, and received his first art lessons from him. He exhibited his works as early as 1796, under the auspices of Minagawa Kein [ja], a showing which included calligraphy. By 1813, he was listed in a directory of Kyōto's most notable citizens.

In 1818, for the seventh anniversary of his half-brother's death, he staged an exhibition of his works. In 1829, he painted a group of birds on the ceiling inside of the "Naginata-Hoko" (長刀鉾; roughly, Long Sword Halberd), one of the floats for the Gion Matsuri (festival), which is still in use today.

In 1830, he published an illustrated book; "Go Keibun gafu" (呉景文画譜, Keibun's Art of Painting), which was a significant contribution to establishing Goshun's style. He also served as Chief Priest at the Myōhō-in [ja], a Tendai temple in Kyōto which was usually assigned to an Imperial prince. After his death, he was initially interred at the Daitsū-ji [ja], an Ōtani-ha temple, but was later moved to the Konpuku-ji, a more prestigious Zen temple.

His style is similar to Goshun's, but somewhat lighter and what, in Western art, would be called manneristic. His best known works are a set of fusumas (sliding doors) in Myōhō–ji, a Nichiren temple, which are called Shiki kōsaku-zu (四季耕作図; roughly, "Cultivation in the Four Seasons").

• Tazawa, Yutaka: "Matsumura Keibun". In: Biographical Dictionary of Japanese Art. Kodansha International, 1981. ISBN 0-87011-488-3.
• Laurance P. Roberts: "Keibun". In: A Dictionary of Japanese Artists. Weatherhill, 1976. ISBN 0-8348-0113-2.