By Kawai Gyokudō
Taishō – Shōwa period (20th century)
Donated by Homma Norio (Sōzan Collection)
Born Kawai Yoshisaburō in what is now Ichinomiya City, Aichi Prefecture, Kawai Gyokudō (1873–1957) was the pseudonym of a painter of the nihonga school, active from the Meiji through to the Shōwa period. Awarded the Order of Culture in 1940, he is notable for his poetic depictions of the mountains and rivers of Japan throughout the four seasons. In Kyoto, he studied under Mochizuki Gyokusen, as well as Kōno Bairei of the Maruyama-Shijō school of painting. In 1896, he moved to Tokyo and became a student of Hashimoto Gahō, of the Kanō school.
This work demonstrates his skill as a sumi ink painter, from the subtle gradations of light and dark, to the trees beautifully rendered using wet-on-wet techniques.