Figure 1: Shukongojin, 12th/14th century Japan. It is composed of wood with traces of polychromy. The sculpture is from Kate S. Buckingham Endowment, 1958. The information is from the Art Institute of Chicago. The image is taken from a sketch over a photograph from an LG camera phone.
Lester Leong
ASST/AH 219
February 9, 2013
Visual Analysis: Shukongojin The Art Institute’s Shukongojin is a Japanese free standing wooden sculpture that is 91 cm tall with traces of red pigment, and was created approximately during the 12th-14th century. Shukongojin is also known as the Thunderbolt Deity that has the power to pierce ignorance with wisdom and defeat evil. The deity is a protector of Buddhist law and is usually placed at gateways of Buddhist temples. The Art Institute created a perfect setting for the sculpture. It was placed on top of a pedestal under a soft yellow light, which gave it a divine appearance. Complimented with the solemn silence at the time and other Buddhist deities on pedestals nearby, the experience was similar to that of a sacred temple. Shukongojin is composed of shapes and direction of the lines that give the sculpture a menacing appearance. The sculpture has three distinct shapes: the head, right arm, and base. The head’s primary noticeable feature is the hair. The hair has a general angular shape that appears like a cone composed of smaller cones. Also the hair has a wavy style which gives it a flame like image. The heads’ secondary feature is the face. Shukongojin has a human like face except it has a third eye on the forehead. These three eyes have a downward gaze supported with furrowed brows, which gives it, at the very least, an angry demeanor. The last feature of its face is the mouth. The sculpture has a smile like appearance, but its teeth slightly spaced give it a ghoulish look. The right arm is placed near the head holding a tool that looks like a double dagger. The tool is pointing in the direction of the eyes’ gaze. The base, in general, has a geometric shape of a rectangle. Upon closer inspection, the base has many round protrusions which give it a wave like appearance. The waves appear chaotic like during a storm. All of these four shapes are accentuated through the multiple lines throughout the sculpture, which sum to a threatening demeanor. All of the lines appear to originate from the center of the sash and radiate outward, which give an appearance of a forward-downward direction. The sash is located at the waist, and the ends of the sash are pointing to the left side. The positioned shape of the sash ends appears as if wind was pushing the sash to the side. The lines of the hair tips point 45 degrees outward from the sash, while the base of the hair point directly at the sash. Below the sash, the sculpture appears to be wearing trousers. The lines of the right side of the trousers parallel the lines of the hair tips, while the left side parallels the lines of the sash. This parallel adds to the image of a strong breeze present created from a forward motion. When taking a piece of the sculpture alone, it appears chaotic, but the sum of the elements displays an aggressive image. Shukongojin is presented in a standing pose, but the positioning of his right arm appears to show a downward motion. It is as if the deity was about to prepare a strike on something. Other features support this idea, such as the direction of the lines and detail on his muscles. The piece as a whole has lines that parallel a sprinter going against the wind. A person positioning for a strike would experience similar effects. Also the muscles on the sculpture appear tense as if in combat and are exaggerated by the wavy lines that look like veins. These aggressive images are cultivated into a menacing appearance when taking into account red pigment, facial expression, and direction of weapon. The red pigment present throughout the body of Shukongojin adds a sense of danger about it. To heighten the dangerous image, the sculpture’s gaze along with its smile seems like one of malicious intent. The direction and placement of the weapon unifies the red pigment and facial expression, which creates an ominous intensity about the sculpture. There are a few pieces of Shukongojin appear unanswerable by looking at this object alone. For example, what is the relation between the flame like hair and the base that looks like waves? Perhaps the meaning could be derived from examining the culture of the period of the sculpture’s creation. The museum’s description states that the deity has flaming hair and standing on top of waves, yet the meaning of these two objects remains elusive. The only estimation that comes to mind is the symbols add to Shukongojin being a force of nature. Also forces of nature, such as fires or typhoons, emit a sense of danger.