Kakemono Crow in a Dive

A crow in a dive, upside down and with wings folded, hurling itself toward a blossoming branch – an unusually dynamic interpretation of a motif that in Japanese painting is otherwise mostly depicted at rest or perched.

The hanging scroll bears the signature and seal of Watanabe Shoka. The plumage is built up with broad, energetic brushstrokes, while the branch above it is rendered in delicate, almost translucent lines – a deliberate contrast between powerful movement and still vegetation. In Japanese culture, the crow is not regarded as a harbinger of misfortune but as a symbol of vigilance and intelligence, and it has been treated by numerous painting schools as an independent, often even humorous motif.

The work is delivered including a wooden box, which serves to protect and properly store the hanging scroll.