Mt. Righiri

Mt. Rishiri, a conical stratovolcano rising 1,721 meters from a small island off the northwest coast of Hokkaido, has long been called the 'Rishiri Fuji' for its symmetrical silhouette. Sekino's choice of this remote northern peak reflects both his Aomori roots — he was born in northern Honshu and retained a sustained interest in northern Japan — and the long Japanese tradition of meisho-e devoted to noted mountains. The composition likely renders the mountain's symmetrical cone against sea and sky, the kind of subject that suits mokuhanga's capacity for layered bokashi gradation in atmospheric passages. Sekino's landscapes typically reduce natural form to broad color masses while preserving topographic specificity, and Rishiri's clean profile lends itself naturally to such graphic treatment. The print sits within a broader strand of his work depicting Hokkaido and Tohoku subjects, alongside his city scenes, theater portraits, and the Tokaido cycle.