In this segment of the wall scroll depicting a scene from The Tale of Genji, Genji pursues his future wife, Murasaki, at the age of ten. Hiding behind some bushes, Genji stalks the ten-year-old Murasaki. Murasaki, meanwhile, lives her daily life, blissfully unaware of her fate as a captive of, and later wife to Genji.
As far as the coloring goes, this image jumps out and splashes colors everywhere. The trees and the house, as a possible representation of Murasaki and her carefree life, display their blue color proudly. As a contrast, the bush Genji hides behind, possibly signifying the turmoil in the future of Murasaki, hides Genji in a sneaky red. The ground, as a theoretical neutral party to this, reflects a yellow light.
As a very Buddhist influenced piece, the people in the picture seem interchangeable. In fact, a casual viewer would have trouble discerning which of the three people Genji looks at is which. With that said, the image immediately catches the eye when one looks upon it. First, one would wonder why they see someone hiding behind a bush, and then they wonder why a stalking image is art. Finally, when they understand the story, they begin to see this as art, and analyze it closer.
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