Snow on Temple Roofs

A woodblock print depicting temple roofs blanketed in fresh snow, a subject that allowed Lilian May Miller to explore the contrast between the angular geometry of traditional Japanese architecture and the soft, formless accumulation of snowfall. The curved eaves and layered rooflines of a Buddhist or Shinto temple complex become sculptural forms under their white covering, each ridge and gutter outlined by the snow. Miller's years living in Japan gave her intimate familiarity with how winter transforms the built landscape, muffling sound and simplifying color to a palette of white, gray, and the dark wood exposed where snow has slid away.