Mt.Fuji － Left

The snow-capped Mt. Fuji rises above the endless sea of clouds. Taikan took full advantage of the wide screen to paint this grand scene which can never be seen from the ground. He worked with all his might to create this excellent piece. Dark ink is used to express Mount Fuji, which stands upright with the powerful ridgelines. Taikan used Gohun to whitewash the clouds softly drifting about, and applied light ink around them to create many layers of three-dimensional effects. Clouds in the shape of flags fluttering in the wind float in the sky above, and the morning sun is painted so elegantly and gracefully as if it is the sunrise on New Year’s Day. Taikan used “blue gold” that has a crisp and polished glow with its silver content rather than “red gold” with the reddish glow from its copper content to express the lights in the sky, in order to bring up the presence of the morning sun that is the only brilliant vermilion point in the large screen. The work gives by no means a dull impression despite the simple composition with just Mount Fuji, clouds, and the morning sun because it is painted on uniquely textured paper while cleverly taking advantage of the structure of the folding screen. This paper is not the one generally used for painting, but appears to be a custom-made thick and quality paper applied with a creping process. The signature “Taikan Kinsha” (humbly drawn by Taikan) is unusual and indicating the presence of a special patron.