One Hundred Old People and Double Star

Buson used the signature “Shain” in his final years, during the six year period between 1778 and 1783. This painting is a representative
masterpiece of this period, created in December, a year before his death. A group of elderly people drinks tea and talks with each other while looking at a painting. A person who looks different from the others is shown in the upper left. His long face indicates he is Jurojin, one of the seven gods of good fortune, strongly resembling his depiction in “Centenarian in cloud,” which was painted around the same time (currently in a private collection). The two pine trees, rough rock surfaces, and many other motifs are also featured in works Buson painted over the course of his long career, effectively making this a distillation of the skills he nurtured through his life. The blank section in the lower left is also a characteristic of his later works. In the upper right are the words “one hundred old people and double star,” and the signature “Shain,” along with two square name seals.