Owl and Two Swallows

A [kacho-e](/glossary/kacho-e) print showing an owl flanked by two swallows, a slightly unusual pairing in the bird-and-flower tradition, since the diurnal swallows and nocturnal owl would not ordinarily appear together in nature. Such juxtapositions were common in [ukiyo-e](/glossary/ukiyo-e) kacho work, where decorative and symbolic considerations often took priority over zoological accuracy; the contrast between the still owl and the darting swallows generates visual interest within the composition. Toyohiro's handling of bird subjects across his career was substantial, and the impression at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (in ink and color on paper) records one of his contributions to a genre he returned to repeatedly.