Study of Sesshu based both on his works and documentary sources around him

本研究的重点是具体的一些尚未探讨的方面有关Sesshu的旅行到中国1467年至1469年。在方法论上，采取了两种不同的方法，并证明了对Sesshu的生活和作品有新的了解。一种方法是直接接触艺术家在中国期间创作的作品主题。另一部分则是从中日两国的文献资料中探讨濑树的生平和作品，其重要的研究成果之一是，在这个被称为“发现时代”的世界性运动的背景下，可以重新审视这位日本艺术家。他的一幅作品敢于细致地描述一个正在崛起的沿着长江的贸易枢纽港。还有一些人的兴趣集中在城市景观或来自亚洲各国的外国人身上。与此同时，Seshu沉浸在济南区的精英文人圈子里。他著名的《四季山水》，现在在日本，实际上是为江南的一位精英所作，并<th>由中国王子的一个家庭长期保存，甚至一直保存到20^世纪初。与此形成鲜明对比的是，这从来不是一个地图般的城市场景，也不是上面提到的类型图片。难怪Sesshu深深地致力于高级和低级的社会活动。有趣的是，这一事实得到了文献资料的证明，例如在Sakai活跃的Kiko Daishuku的日记，Sakai是一个对当代海外经济和文化潮流非常开放的新兴城市。

This study focuses specifically on some still unexplored aspects concerning Sesshu's travel to China from 1467 to 1469. Methodologically, two different approaches were taken and turned out to shed new lights on Sesshu's life and works. One approach touches directly the works themeslves the artist created during his stay in China. The other in turn probes documentary records leading us to Sesshu's life and works from both Chinese and Japanese sides.One significant outcome of this study is the fact that this Japanese artist could be reconsidered in the context of the world wide movement in this era ; the so-called Age of Discovery. One of his works dare to describe minutely a rising trade hub-port along the Yantze River. There are some others whose keen interests are centered on either urban landscapes or foreign people from all over the Asian countries.At the same time, Sesshu was immersed in the elite Wenren circles in Jinangnan District. His famous Four Season Landscape, now in Japan, was actually done for a certain Jiangnan elite and was long kept-even up to the early 20^<th> century--by one of the Chinese prince's family. In sharp contrast, this was never a map-like urban scene nor a genre picture rendition above mentioned. No wonder, Sesshu was deeply committed in both high and low societal activities. What is interesting is that this fact is attested by documentary sources such as the Diary of Kiko Daishuku who was active in Sakai whch is well konwn as a new city quite open to contemporary economomical and cultural trends overseas.