Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto

This landscape print depicts Kiyomizudera, the eighth-century Buddhist temple on the forested slopes of Higashiyama in eastern Kyoto, most recognized for its large wooden stage projecting out over a steep hillside supported by hundreds of zelkova pillars without the use of nails. Sekino's composition likely emphasizes this dramatic architectural form set against layered foliage — the temple's weathered wood rendered in warm ochres and browns contrasting with the surrounding cedar and maple canopy. Kyoto's historic sites recur across Sekino's landscape output, and his approach brings sosaku-hanga directness to what might otherwise be a conventional meisho-e subject. Bokashi gradations in the sky and atmospheric recession in the wooded hillside would require careful block preparation, while the temple's intricate bracket system and veranda railings demand precise carving to maintain legibility at scale.