Bird on Snow Covered Pine Branch

Artist Setsudo (Japanese)

DateMeiji Era (1868-1912)

Dimensions14 1/2 × 10 1/4 in. (36.8 × 26 cm)

Mediumwatercolor

ClassificationDrawings

Credit LineGift of Edward Drummond Libbey

Object number

1912.615

Not on View

Label TextPainted by an artist little known today, this watercolor expresses the principles and ideals that governed painting in Japan for centuries. In order to achieve an overall sense of harmony, Setsudo paid particular attention to the placement of the picture’s elements within the space and to the distribution of light and shadow. In accordance with Japanese traditions of design, he rendered the image with strong, confident strokes of the paintbrush and with a sparing use of color. Most Japanese artists of the 19th and early 20th century would have also studied western artistic techniques and ideas, resulting in a dynamic fusion of the two artistic traditions.