Vintage Japanese Showa 4 Panel Folding Screen Peony Swallow Butterfly Polychrome 36"

Japanese Showa Four Panel Folding Screen Peony Swallow Butterfly Polychrome Korean Influenced 36 Inches

A vivid and exuberantly decorated mid-Showa period Japanese four-panel folding screen (byobu) in the bird-and-flower (kachō-ga) tradition, notable for its warm ochre-buff ground and richly polychrome palette showing strong Korean minhwa decorative influence. The composition sweeps across all four panels as a single unified image: cascading peony (botan) blooms in an unusually wide range of colors — deep red, coral, pink, orange, yellow, white, blue, and lavender — fill the lower two-thirds of the composition amid dense green foliage, rendered with careful shading and petal-by-petal articulation. Two swallows (tsubame) animate the right panels — one perched on a branch, one in mid-flight below — their black-and-white plumage rendered with naturalistic precision. Scattered throughout the composition are numerous butterfly species depicted with near-entomological detail: each butterfly individually characterized in turquoise, green, pink, and brown with fine wing-vein patterning visible in close-up. The warm ochre-buff painted paper ground, the saturated polychrome palette, and the overall decorative sensibility reflect the influence of Korean minhwa folk painting traditions on Showa-period Japanese decorative screen production. The black lacquered wood frame carries gilt brass corner hardware with eternal knot motifs; the border is a blue-grey brocade silk with geometric pattern. Plain dark brown paper reverse. Unsigned.

Dimensions: approximately 36"H × 96"W overall; each panel approximately 36"H × 24"W (91 × 61 cm per panel) Weight:

The peony, swallow, and butterfly combination carries layered auspicious meaning across both Japanese and Korean decorative traditions — the peony signifying wealth and good fortune, the swallow heralding spring and happy return, the butterfly representing joy and longevity. The exuberant polychrome palette and ochre ground of this screen give it a warmth and decorative energy that sets it apart from the more restrained gold-leaf byobu tradition.

Very good condition; no tears or holes noted. Please refer to all photos for condition details prior to purchase.

A cheerful and decoratively rich screen — the saturated polychrome peony, swallow, and butterfly composition on warm ochre ground brings considerable warmth and color to any interior setting.