







The Most Famous
Painters from Japan
Trending Painters from Japan This Week
The top 10 Painters from Japan trending on Wikipedia in the past 7 days, with a quick note on what drove the spike.
- #1

Yayoi Kusama
b. 1929
Trending in German (#73) Wikipedia (2,530 views, on Apr 10).
Top 10 Japanese Painters
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Japanese Painters of all time. This list of famous Japanese Painters is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography's online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Japanese Painters.
- #1

Yayoi Kusama
b. 1929
HPI 75.4047 langsYayoi Kusama is most famous for her polka dot paintings and sculptures. She is also known for her obsessive compulsive disorder, which she...Read moreShow less
Yayoi Kusama is most famous for her polka dot paintings and sculptures. She is also known for her obsessive compulsive disorder, which she has been struggling with since she was a child.
- #2

Utagawa Kuniyoshi
1797 - 1861
HPI 68.9734 langsKuniyoshi was a Japanese artist during the Edo period. He is most famous for his ukiyo-e woodblock prints, which often depicted scenes from...Read moreShow less
Kuniyoshi was a Japanese artist during the Edo period. He is most famous for his ukiyo-e woodblock prints, which often depicted scenes from Japanese history and folklore.
- #3

Utamaro
1753 - 1806
HPI 68.4848 langsUtamaro is most famous for his portraits of beautiful women.
- #4

Sesshū Tōyō
1420 - 1506
HPI 68.1643 langsJapanese artist (1420-1506)
- #5

Suzuki Harunobu
1725 - 1770
HPI 66.7832 langsSuzuki Harunobu is most famous for his ukiyo-e woodblock prints. He was a Japanese artist who lived in the Edo period, which is when Japan...Read moreShow less
Suzuki Harunobu is most famous for his ukiyo-e woodblock prints. He was a Japanese artist who lived in the Edo period, which is when Japan was closed off from the rest of the world. His artwork was influenced by Western art, and he was one of the first Japanese artists to use Western perspective. He is most famous for his beautiful depictions of women.
- #6

Hishikawa Moronobu
1618 - 1694
HPI 65.8227 langsJapanese painter and printmaker (1618-1694)
- #7

Tsuguharu Foujita
1886 - 1968
HPI 65.1123 langsFrench painter (1886-1968)
- #8

Kunisada
1786 - 1865
HPI 65.0824 langsukiyo-e artist (1786–1865)
- #9

Masaaki Hatsumi
b. 1931
HPI 63.8321 langsJapanese martial
- #10

Yoshitoshi
1839 - 1892
HPI 63.6625 langsJapanese artist and printmaker (1839–1892)
People by Birth Decade
Browse notable Japanese Painters grouped by birth decade. Each decade shows the top 10 by HPI; expand to see everyone.
1960s(2)
1930s(2)
1920s(1)
1910s(1)
1880s(1)
1870s(2)
1860s(1)
1790s(1)
1780s(1)
1760s(1)
1750s(2)
1730s(1)
1720s(2)
1660s(2)
1650s(1)
1610s(1)
1600s(1)
1570s(1)
1540s(1)
1530s(1)
1470s(1)
1420s(1)
1150s(1)
Overlapping Lives
Which Painters were alive at the same time? This visualization shows the lifespans of the 14 most globally memorable Painters since 1700.






















