SONG of NINGYO. 2021
Acrylic on canvas. D-120 см
This Art - work is part of the project "Another Skin".
The paint is made in the author's technique of painting by Vasili Zianko based acrylic painting on canvas using a variety of textures, washes, the finest glazing, volumetric contours.
In Japanese legends, Ningyo (人魚) is an immortal fish woman who has a quiet voice, similar to the singing of a lark or the sound of a flute. Its meat has a pleasant taste, and those who taste it achieve extraordinary longevity. However, the capture of Ningyo is believed to bring storms and bad luck, so the fishermen who caught this creature released it back into the sea. Ningyo washed ashore was an omen of war or disaster. One of the most famous Japanese folk tales about Ningyo is called "Yao Bikuni" (八百比丘尼 - "Eight Hundred Years of a Buddhist Acolyte") or "Happyaku Bikuni". The story tells how a fisherman who lived in the province of Wakasa once caught an unusual fish. For all the time of his fishing, the fisherman has never come across anything like this! He invited his friends to visit him to taste the meat of a wonderful fish. However, one of the guests, looking into the kitchen, noticed that the head of the fish resembled a human face, and warned the others not to touch the questionable food. Thus, when the fisherman had finished preparing his meal, and invited his guests to taste the fried Ningyo meat, they secretly wrapped it in paper and hid it on themselves to throw it away on the way home. But one man, drunk too much, forgot to throw away the strange fish. He had a young daughter, who, when her father returned home, demanded some present from him, and he inadvertently gave her fried meat. After regaining consciousness, the father tried to stop her from eating strange food, fearing poisoning, but by that time it was too late, the daughter had already eaten everything. And since nothing bad happened to the girl, this man was no longer worried about what had happened.
Years passed, the girl Yao-hime grew up and got married. But after that, she no longer aged, having the same youthful appearance of a 15-year-old girl, while the first husband grew old and died. After many years of unfading youth and repeated widowhood, the woman became a Buddhist nun and traveled the world. Finally, she returned to her hometown in Wakasa, where she ended her life at the age of 800. A temple was built in her honor.
