Landscape right of a triptych of White-Robed Kannon with Landscapes, late 15th century, attributed to Kenk? Sh?kei, Japanese, active before 1478¡Vca. 1523, 38 5/16 ¡Ñ 12 7/8 in. (97.31 ¡Ñ 32.7 cm) (image)70 1/4 ¡Ñ 17 3/16 in. (178.44 ¡Ñ 43.66 cm) (without rollers), Ink and color on paper, Japan, 15th century, Buddhist monks, particularly those of the Zen school, were devoted landscape painters. Like calligraphy, painting was considered part of the spiritual training necessary for enlightenment. Zen monks favored monochrome ink painting due to its simplicity and straightforwardness. The priest Kenk? Sh?kei, who served as secretary at Kench?ji Temple in Kamakura, studied Chinese paintings from the Song (960-1279) and Yuan (1279-1368) dynasties and became a key figure in the ink-painting circles of Japan.