Shrine Gates c. 1850s

print, ink, color-on-paper

toned paper

light pencil work

water colours

print

japan

ink

color-on-paper

ink drawing experimentation

botanical drawing

ink colored

watercolour bleed

watercolour illustration

botanical art

watercolor

Takahashi Hakō's "Shrine Gates" is a delicate and minimalist Japanese woodblock print, dating from the 1850s. It depicts a series of vermillion torii gates, traditional Japanese gateways marking the entrance to Shinto shrines, vanishing into a soft mist. The delicate brushstrokes capture the ethereal beauty of the scene, with a lone tree branch adding a touch of natural grace. The composition is balanced and serene, reflecting the tranquility of the subject matter. "Shrine Gates" exemplifies the aesthetic principles of ukiyo-e, a genre of Japanese art that celebrated the transient beauty of everyday life.

Comments

minneapolisinstituteofart about 1 year ago

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To commemorate the arrival of a new year, poetry societies convened special gatherings during which they composed celebratory and seasonal poems. They then published the best of these verses in print format, often hiring artists to provide an appropriate image. It was typical for such prints to be made with special care as the festivity of the season justified the higher cost of expensive colors and specialized techniques. Featuring only eight poems, this print must have been commissioned by a rather small group. A line of the red torii gates leads the way to a Shinto shrine, a traditional destination on New Year's Day, where people offer prayers for a health and prosperity in the coming months. Near the gateways stands a plum tree with small red buds. Because the Japanese traditionally observed the lunar New Year (which occurs in February or March in the Gregorian calendar), plum trees were considered the harbingers of spring, since they are one of the first plants to blossom at this time.