Seiki Kuroda, Japanese, (1866–1924), studied art in Paris after first going there to
earn a law degree. In Paris he followed a traditional course of study in Academic art and
also discovered plein–air painting.
For most of his career, Kuroda painted in a style that was basically Impressionistic,
but his work also displayed his academic training. His plein–air works and his more formal
compositions were stylistically influenced by Edouard Manet and the Barbizon School.
Returning to Japan in 1893, Kuroda worked as a painter and educator. He was among the
first to introduce Western–style paintings to the general Japanese population and was a
major influence on this style’s eventual acceptance in Japan. [DES–4/07]
If utility were indeed the cause of beauty, then on that principle, the wedge-like snout of a swine... would be extremely beautiful.
Edmund Burke, British political writer in The Sublime and Beautiful. (1756).