Gazanishi Shrine at Lake Tazawa

Lake Tazawa in Akita Prefecture is Japan's deepest lake, known for the deep cobalt blue of its water. Gazanishi Shrine stands on the western shore of the lake, and Hasui's print of this site likely presents the shrine's torii or main hall with the lake extending beyond and the volcanic mountains of the Tazawa-ko region visible in the distance. The extreme color saturation achievable in printing the lake's distinctive blue would have been a technical challenge and a visual centerpiece of the composition. Hasui traveled extensively in the Tohoku region throughout his career, producing landscape prints that recorded lesser-known provincial sites alongside famous meisho. The combination of Shinto architectural form, still water, and mountain backdrop follows a compositional formula Hasui employed in numerous lake-and-shrine subjects, with the shrine providing a vertical focal point against the broad horizontal of the water.