The Beauty of Chaos
<p>Matsubara thought about this for a long time, almost paralyzed with doubt. Two years later, he began painting a maelstrom of raging flames and wild beasts, recalling Pablo Picasso’s <a href="https://www.museoreinasofia.es/en/collection/artwork/guernica" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank"><em>Guernica</em></a>. The work — actually 12 separate paintings, joined to form a kind of traditional Japanese screen — is an abstract representation of a Buddhist parable: a man is chased down a narrow path between a river of water (representing attachments and greed) and a river of fire (representing anger and hate). Only with deep focus and the guidance of Buddha can he reach enlightenment.</p>
<p>Now in his 70s, Matsubara explained this watershed moment of creation with the interpretive help of Mai Yamaguchi, Mia’s Andrew W. Mellon Assistant Curator of Japanese and Korean Art. Painting this parable, she said, was a form of prayer, a spiritual purging of everything holding him back. Healthy mind, healthy art.</p>
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