Kiyomizu in rain
by Kawase Hasui
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Source:
- The Art of Japan
- Image courtesy of
- The Art of Japan
Description
Kiyomizu-dera in Kyoto, with its broad wooden stage (butai) cantilevered over the hillside on a framework of tall zelkova pillars, provided Hasui with a subject ideally suited to rain compositions. Rain was among Hasui's most practiced atmospheric conditions, and he rendered it through diagonal line blocks printed over moistened washi, combined with darkened, desaturated color in the background. In a rain view of Kiyomizu, the forested hillside below the stage would dissolve into mist, the city of Kyoto visible as a pale grey mass in the distance, and the orange-red of the temple's main hall and columns appearing muted and cool through the falling water. The wooden stage itself, dark with rain, would contrast against the pale misty valley below.
More Prints by Kawase Hasui
More Rain Prints
Rain Shower at Shо̄no, from the series Fifty-three Stations of the Tо̄kaidо̄ (Tо̄kaidо̄ gojusan tsugi)
1962
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Shōno: Driving Rain (Shōno hakuu), from the series Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō (Tōkaidō gojūsan tsugi no uchi), also known as the First Tōkaidō or Great Tōkaidō
c. 1833-36
Woodblock print (nishiki-e); ink and color on paper
Omiya in Rain (Ame no Omiya)
Ame no Omiya
1930
Color woodblock print; oban
Evening Shower at Teradomari (Teradomari no yau), from the series "Souvenirs of Travel, Second Series (Tabi miyage dai nishu)"
Teradomari no yau
1921
Color woodblock print; oban
Featured in Collections
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Frequently Asked Questions
Kiyomizu in rain was created by Kawase Hasui (川瀬巴水).
Kiyomizu in rain depicts rain.