Mount Fuji

Minol Araki was born in Dalian in Northern China where he learned Chinese culture, art, and calligraphy. He repatriated with his family to Nagasaki, Japan, in 1945 and later moved to the United States. In 1973, Araki continued his study of Chinese painting under the famous Chinese painter Chang Dai-chien (Zhang Daqian; 1899– 1983) and began a long-lasting friendship with him. Chang is known for developing a modern interpretation of the traditional Chinese splashed-ink and splashed-color techniques. Although the subject of this painting is Mount Fuji, a quintessential Japanese theme, Chang’s influences are visible in this landscape, not only in the use of splashed and soaked color techniques but in the bold, dramatic painting style.