Kegon Waterfall at Nikko is one of Japan's most celebrated natural landmarks, and Kasamatsu's interpretation through the Watanabe workshop captures its grandeur with characteristic restraint. Lifetime editions sell for $800-$2,500. The vertical cascade lent itself well to the woodblock format, and strong impressions with crisp water detail are particularly valued.
Kegon Falls — the ninety-seven-meter waterfall below Lake Chuzenji at Nikko — tumbles through its narrow gorge, the sheer volume and force of the falling water rendered as a column of fractured white against dark volcanic rock. Kasamatsu depicted Kegon in multiple versions, returning to the challenge of conveying the physical energy of falling water through the static medium of the woodblock print. The fall's scale requires compositional decisions about where to frame the image — just the cataract, or the full gorge height.
Wakasa Kugushiko
1920
Color woodblock print; oban
Woodblock print
1934
Color woodblock print; oban
n.d.
Woodblock print; ishizuri-e, section of harimaze sheet
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Kegon Waterfall was created by Shiro Kasamatsu (笠松紫浪).
Kegon Waterfall uses Bokashi, Nishiki-e, and Moku-hanga, on woodblock print.
Kegon Waterfall was published by Watanabe Shozaburo.
Kegon Waterfall depicts landscapes, waterfalls, and rivers & lakes.
