The 1966 Nikko print takes Saito into architectural territory quite different from his typical Zen severity—the baroque splendor of the Toshogu Shrine complex, with its elaborately painted and carved wooden surfaces, its Chinese Ming-dynasty-influenced ornament, its famous sleeping cat and monkey carvings. How he resolved Nikko's ornamental excess into his reductive style would have required significant selection and simplification, stripping the famous carvings to their underlying geometric mass.
伏見稲荷
Woodblock print
c. 1832/38
Color woodblock print; oban
Woodblock print
Uji Byodoin no ichibu
1921
Color woodblock print; oban
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Nikko was created by Saito Kiyoshi (斎藤清) in 1966.
Nikko depicts temples & shrines, architecture, and travel scenes, set at Nikko.
Nikko measures 37.8 × 52.4 cm.
