Remains of the Snow at Okawa 1917

Fujishima Takeji painted ‘Remains of the Snow at Okawa’ with oil on canvas, using subdued colors and soft, blended brushstrokes. It's all about atmosphere, right? You can almost feel the dampness in the air. Takeji’s handling of the paint is what gets me. Look at the way he’s layered those greens in the water, almost blurring the reflections. It’s not about precise detail, but the overall feeling of a fleeting moment. The snow-covered buildings in the background are barely defined. It’s like he’s capturing the memory of a scene, rather than the scene itself. This approach reminds me of Whistler and his interest in tonalism. Like Takeji, Whistler used muted colors and soft brushwork to create a sense of mood and atmosphere in his paintings. And in the end, isn't that what art is all about, capturing a feeling, an impression, a moment in time?