Heptametrical quatrain on willows at the West Lake

This pair of hanging scrolls shows a poem by Kaioku and the accompaniment painting by Hine Taizan. The painting by Taizan was created in the summer of 1864, the year after Kaioku’s death. Kaioku’s poem, on the theme of the willows at the West Lake in Hangzhou, China, describes the atmosphere of spring. The West Lake is famous for its scenic landscape which a lot of literary people have longed for since ancient times. On the other hand, Taizan didn’t include elements that identify locations but described two people dropping a fishing line under the verdant willow trees. Was it his homage to Kaioku, who loved fishing, that Taizan included fishing in this painting?