Description

In several stages, a waterfall works its way down through a densely overgrown gorge, collects in a pale green shimmering pool, and runs out over flat rock slabs in the foreground. On a ledge in the upper left stands a thatched-roof house behind a simple fence, above which a gently rounded mountain fades entirely into the haze.

The execution works almost exclusively with gradations of gray, applying color only where water flows. This makes the watercourse the true protagonist, guiding the eye in a clear movement from top to bottom through the vertical format. Small flocks of birds, suggested with just a few strokes, animate the misty zones in between. The individual stages of the waterfall are clearly separated from one another, so that the path of the water can be traced step by step.

Waterfalls are traditionally regarded in Japan as places of special power, where ascetics underwent purification, and are accordingly a frequent subject of hanging scroll painting. At the lower right are the signature and red seal. As a silkscreen print on silk, this hanging scroll unfolds a cool, refreshing effect that suits quiet rooms well.