Tsuta Marsh, Mutsu

Tsutanuma Marsh, a series of small beech-forest ponds near Tsuta Onsen in Aomori Prefecture, appears across multiple prints in Hasui's catalog reflecting sustained interest in this specific landscape. This version likely presents the marsh in a close-framed compositional format with beech trunks rising through the middle ground and the still water surface occupying the foreground, reflecting the pale sky overhead. The horizontal stillness of the water surface provides a compositional counterweight to the vertical rhythm of tree trunks—a structural tension Hasui explored consistently across his forest and pond subjects. If this print depicts the autumn season, the palette would employ burnt oranges, yellows, and pale gold of deciduous foliage against overcast northern sky. In woodblock printing, achieving convincing water reflection requires precise color registration and carefully graded bokashi, with the reflected image laid down slightly darker and more muted than the scene it mirrors to simulate the optical properties of still water.