Aodo Denzen · 1748–1822
Aodo Denzen
Aodo Denzen was a late Edo-period Western-style painter and copperplate printmaker. Born in Sukagawa, Mutsu Province (now Sukagawa, Fukushima Prefecture), he was taken into the service of Matsudaira Sadanobu, lord of Shirakawa, and produced copperplate prints and Western-style paintings.
Aodo Denzen was born in 1748 (Kan'en 1) in Sukagawa, Mutsu Province (now Sukagawa, Fukushima Prefecture), the second son of a farm-tool merchant. His real name was Nagata Zenkichi. While helping with the family dyeing business, he learned painting from his elder brother. At fifteen he dedicated a votive plaque, Minamoto no Yoriyoshi Drawing Water, to a local temple.
In 1794 (Kansei 6) he was taken into the service of Matsudaira Sadanobu, lord of the Shirakawa domain, and received a stipend. On Sadanobu's orders he studied Western-style painting under Tani Buncho and is said to have spent four years in Nagasaki studying copperplate printing. The studio name Aodo, meaning spanning Asia and Europe, was given to him by Sadanobu.
He was granted a residence in the castle town of Shirakawa and settled there, leaving Western-style paintings in addition to copperplate prints. He died in 1822 (Bunsei 5). Mount Asama screens is one of his Western-style paintings.
