Edo-Meiji period (19th century)

The designs of scattered fans were originally developed by a Rimpa artist, Tawaraya Sotatsu (17th century) and continued by his followers. Sotatsu may have based some of his designs on fragments of earlier illustrated handscrolls. Fans associated with his school have become even more important for the reconstruction of those lost scrolls.
The Japanese have painted on paper folding fans since at least the twelfth century. No other culture prizes fans as highly. They are indispensable for both men and women, not only for their functional role but as an intimate surface for painting and poetry and as emblems of elegance. Usually, designs are painted before the paper is folded and pasted onto the bamboo ribs. By the fifteenth century, artists began to arrange fans on folding screens. This subject was applied to various designs of lacquer works as well.