and
Liu Haichan'' (
Museum of Fine Arts Boston)
Miura Sakonjirō was born in 1730, into a merchant family, as the second son of Miura Kichiemon and his wife Yotsu. His family was wealthy, but all of his immediate family members died before he reached the age of 18. He became a painter in his late 20s, and studied under
Takada Keiho It is recorded that he studied the painting methods of the Soga School and the Unkoku School, which his actual artwork reflects. and paintings depicting
Zen Buddhist saints and renowned writers as vulgar characters, which was extremely unusual in his time. Considering he was friends with many
Confucian and Zen scholars including Matsunami Teisai,
Yangmingism of the late
Ming dynasty, which valued the spirit of "strangeness" and "madness," is considered to have influenced his art. Having settled down in Kyoto in his later years after having traveled across the country, Soga's later paintings are marked with a distinctly softer approach compared to his bizarre and unorthodox style that marked most of his artistic career. == Works ==