Busshi

A busshi (仏師) is a Japanese term for Buddhist artists who specialized in painting or sculpting images for Buddhist temples, predominantly in the Nara period.[1][2] Painters were specifically known as e-busshi (絵仏師), whereas sculptors who worked with wood were called ki-busshi.[3] Busshi were organized into both categories of task and grade of mastery: sō-busshi (惣仏師, master) dai-busshi (大仏師, major), gon-busshi (権仏師, assistant), tō-busshi (頭仏師, supervisor), and shō-busshi (小仏師, apprentice).[4] These rank designations continued in use until the Heian period.

Practices

In both the Nara and Heian periods, busshi were organized in bussho (仏所, workshops) that belonged to the imperial court, temples, and the nobility.[1] From the 10th century, the workshops became independent from temples and began working on commission.[5] The bussho workshops disappeared entirely during the Edo period.

List of Busshi

References
  1. Louis-Frédéric (2002). Japan Encyclopedia. Harvard University Press. p. 95. ISBN 978-0-674-01753-5.
  2. Graham, Patricia J. (2007-09-30). Faith and Power in Japanese Buddhist Art, 1600–2005. University of Hawaii Press. p. 252. ISBN 978-0-8248-6246-6.
  3. Iwao, Seiichi; Sakamato, Tarō; Hōgetsu, Keigo; Yoshikawa, Itsuji; Akiyama, Terukazu; Iyanaga, Shôkichi; Matsubara, Hideichi; Kanazawa, Shizue (1978). "9. E-busshi". Dictionnaire historique du Japon (in French). 4 (1): 124–125.
  4. 日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ),世界大百科事典内言及. "小仏師(しょうぶっし)とは？ 意味や使い方". コトバンク (in Japanese). Retrieved 2023-08-23.
  5. Hempel, Rose (1983). The Heian Civilization of Japan. Phaidon. p. 233. ISBN 978-0-7148-2295-2.


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