KUTSUKI-NO-HARU (Spring in Shiga)

"Kutsuki-no-haru" celebrates spring in Kutsuki, a valley district in Shiga Prefecture known for its dramatic scenery along the route between Kyoto and the northern Shiga plain. The arrival of spring in this mountainous area is rendered through the characteristic signs Nishijima favored: the lightening of sky, the emergence of early vegetation from winter's bare, and perhaps the swollen rush of the river fed by snowmelt from the surrounding peaks. His treatment of mountain spring differs from his urban spring subjects in its emphasis on natural forces rather than architectural setting.