Lake Biwa

Lake Biwa, Japan's largest freshwater lake located in Shiga Prefecture near Kyoto, was celebrated in art through the tradition of the Eight Views of Omi — Japanese adaptations of the Chinese Eight Views of Xiaoxiang, depicting the lake under specific atmospheric conditions. This print from Shoda's Lake Biwa series likely captures one such canonical view: a broad expanse of still water, distant mountains shading into haze, and perhaps a boat or pine-fringed shore in the foreground. Shoda's atmospheric treatment of water and sky — drawing on both nihonga ink gradation and [shin-hanga](/glossary/shin-hanga) [bokashi](/glossary/bokashi) technique — would suit the misty, expansive quality of the lake, which shifts dramatically with season, time of day, and weather.