Matsuo Bashō (松尾芭蕉)

Matsuo Bashō (松尾芭蕉) was an influential figure in the cultural and poetic landscape, active across the period spanning 1644 to 1685. Though renowned historically for his literary contributions, his artistic output represented in museum collections focuses on the intersection of poetry, calligraphy, and painting.

Five of his pieces are preserved in institutional holdings, confirming his practice in integrating text and image. These works include a Poetry Painting and various examples of his written verse and correspondence, such as the famous Hokku poem “On a withered branch” and the concise haiku “The names of things” haiku. Further examples represented in collections include the Record of a haiku exchange on kaishi writing paper and the biographical record provided by his Letter to Yamagishi Hanzan.

The presence of Matsuo Bashō (松尾芭蕉) paintings and calligraphies in major repositories, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, underscores the historical and aesthetic significance of his output. As many of these cultural documents enter the public domain, high-quality prints of his work are increasingly available for study and display.