Pagoda in Rain, Kyoto

This meisho-e depicts one of Kyoto's iconic multi-tiered pagodas dissolving into rainfall, a subject that invites atmospheric rendering through the sosaku-hanga approach. Sekino likely employed graduated bokashi to convey the diffusion of light through wet air, with the pagoda's rooflines emerging as dark silhouettes against mist-softened backgrounds. Rain in Japanese printmaking is traditionally rendered through fine parallel lines cut into the block; in Sekino's hands this convention is transformed by his direct carving sensibility, where each mark carries individual intention. The wet stone and tile surfaces would allow for subtle shifts in ink density, and the vertical thrust of the pagoda form provides a strong compositional anchor against the dissolving horizontality of rain. Kyoto's temple districts offered Sekino recurring material throughout his career, and this print reflects his engagement with the tension between architectural permanence and atmospheric transience.