Dandelions and clovers beneath cherry tree

Dandelions and clovers beneath cherry tree is a Katsushika Hokusai ukiyo-e print of about 1802 in the Art Institute of Chicago. The work belongs to the bird-and-flower (kacho-e) tradition adapted to the surimono format, in which a seasonal botanical subject anchored the kyoka verse printed on the same sheet. Hokusai arranges the spring flora as a quiet still life: dandelions and clover unfurl beneath the spreading branch of a cherry, with each plant carefully observed and the cherry above suggesting the upper register of spring flowering. The image plays on the layered nature of the season, where ground flowers and tree blossoms together mark the year's renewal, and the verse would have extended this layering into literary play. Edo ukiyo-e of this period absorbed surimono botanical work easily, and Katsushika Hokusai was among its most accomplished practitioners. The delicate color, finely cut blocks, and restrained palette identify the print as a connoisseur object made for kyoka circles rather than the broader broadside market. The draftsmanship is consistent with the parallel sketchbook work that would soon be gathered as Hokusai manga, where seasonal flora, animals, and figures are rendered with the same calm observational eye. As a ukiyo-e print, Dandelions and clovers beneath cherry tree is a small but characteristic example of how Hokusai brought the discipline of natural-history observation to bear on Edo's poetry-club culture. The Art Institute of Chicago impression preserves the delicate color and registration of the original printing.