Yasushi Sugiyama

Who was Yasushi Sugiyama?

Yasushi Sugiyama was a Japanese painter of the Showa and Heisei eras, who practiced the nihonga style of watercolour painting.

Sugiyama was born in 1909 in Asakusa, the eldest son of the owner of a stationery shop. In 1928, Sugiyama enrolled in the Tokyo Art School. He formed the "rossogasha" along with Yamamoto Kyujin and Takayama Tatsuo, and participated positively in the movement to reform nihonga. His paintings are characteristized by peacefulness filled with a sense of security, owing to excellent sketching ability and solid construction.

In 1958, his eldest daughter married Yukio Mishima. As a reason for choosing her, Mishima suggested "because she was the daughter of an artist, so she wouldn't hold to many of the illusions people have about artists".

In 1974, Sugiyama was awarded the Japanese Order of Culture.