Arashiyama in Kyoto

Arashiyama, the forested mountain district on the western edge of Kyoto, was one of the most frequently depicted sites in Hasui's landscape series. This print likely shows the Togetsukyo bridge spanning the Oi River with Arashiyama and Kameyama hills in the distance, a composition the artist revisited across multiple seasons and formats. The scene emphasizes the contrast between the horizontal plane of the river, the arching curve of the bridge, and the steeply rising forested slopes. Hasui's carvers used fine parallel line engraving to suggest the texture of the hillside pines and maples, while the printer employed graduated bokashi to render the soft light that filters through the mountain valley. The composition draws on a long tradition of meisho-e (famous-place pictures) associated with Arashiyama while reinterpreting the subject through the naturalistic light of twentieth-century shin-hanga production.