Dutch ship

"Dutch Ship" depicts one of the VOC trading vessels that made the long voyage from Batavia (Jakarta) to Nagasaki — the sole permitted connection between Japan and the world of European maritime trade during the period of sakoku. These ships, with their multiple masts and cannon-lined sides, were objects of intense fascination to the Japanese who saw them in Nagasaki harbor, their arrival signaling the annual infusion of exotic goods, information, and foreign presence. Kawakami's simplified compositional style gives the ship a bold, graphic presence appropriate to its cultural significance.