Nikko

Nikko, in Tochigi prefecture, is the site of the Tosho-gu mausoleum complex dedicated to Tokugawa Ieyasu, surrounded by mountain forests and waterfalls. A Tokuriki print of Nikko would likely depict the polychrome Yomeimon gate with its carved figures, the vermillion Shinkyo bridge over the Daiya river, or the cedar-lined approach paths. Architectural subjects suited his methodical compositional approach, with strong horizontals and verticals balanced by the organic forms of surrounding trees. He would have used several colour blocks to register the deep reds, golds, blacks, and greens of Nikko's structures, with bokashi shading in the surrounding foliage and sky. Nikko was a recurring destination for Tokuriki, who produced numerous prints of major temple and shrine sites across Japan as part of his meisho-e production. His treatment of religious sites carried particular weight given his family's twelve-generation lineage as official print artists for Kyoto's Honganji temple.