White-cheeked starling

White-cheeked Starling depicts Spodiopsar cineraceus, a common Japanese bird recognizable by the white patches on its face against grey-brown plumage and orange bill and legs. Kuroda's mokuhanga rendering likely captures the species through carefully calibrated color blocks: a base impression for the body's grey-brown wash, separate registrations for the white facial markings and underparts, and accent blocks for the bill and legs. Fine keyblock linework would articulate the layered feathering and the bird's alert posture, with [bokashi](/glossary/bokashi) gradation possibly used in the background to suggest a branch or open sky. As a [kacho-e](/glossary/kacho-e) subject, the starling is less canonical than the cranes, sparrows, or warblers favored by Edo-period printmakers, and the choice reflects Kuroda's documentary interest in the actual birds of contemporary Japan rather than symbolic or seasonal archetypes. The print belongs to the bird studies that run alongside his cyclist work, both demonstrating the same quiet observational discipline applied to different subjects.