Birds & Flowers Prints (1639)
Birds and flowers (kacho-ga) form one of the three classical subject categories of East Asian painting, alongside landscapes and figures. In Japanese woodblock printmaking, the tradition produced some of the medium's most technically accomplished works, demanding exceptional carving precision for feather details and botanical accuracy. Hokusai's "Small Flowers" series and Hiroshige's bird-and-flower prints of the 1830s established kacho-ga as a major ukiyo-e genre. These works combined natural observation with poetic sensibility, often incorporating verses that amplified the seasonal or emotional associations of their subjects. The surimono tradition — privately commissioned luxury prints — particularly favored bird-and-flower subjects, producing exquisite small-format works with metallic pigments and blind embossing. Shin-hanga artists continued the tradition with renewed naturalistic ambition. Ohara Koson (also known as Shoson) became the genre's most prolific modern practitioner, creating hundreds of bird-and-flower designs that combined scientific observation with decorative elegance. His prints of egrets, crows, and songbirds in atmospheric settings became internationally popular. The genre demands particular technical skill in color gradation and fine-line carving, making kacho-ga prints a showcase for the collaborative craft of designer, carver, and printer.
Artists Known for Birds & Flowers
magnolia spitzack woodblock woodcut mokuhanga print printmaking washi seattle art
pacific rose 2025 dry dock sailboat print fine art seattle port townsend charles spitzack seattle artist printmaker woodcut woodblock mokuhanga
thank you to our civil servants public employees capitol building washington state wa dc rose roses woodcut print by artist charles spitzack woodblock and mokuhanga printmaker Japanese wood block print printmaking washi seattle fine art pnw nw relief
Anthurium andraeanum penis plant flower woodcut print by artist charles spitzack woodblock and mokuhanga printmaker Japanese wood block print printmaking washi seattle fine art nw relief prints color contemporary artist pnw seattle print arts
Orchids, butterfly and ladybird.
1888-1934
2024 spitzack fort a parrot with a proposal flower woodcut print woodblock mokuhanga seattle art artist relief printmaking lino linocut
2024 spitzack fort worden butterfly cosmos flower blooming fly bug woodcut print woodblock mokuhanga seattle art artist relief printmaking lino linocut
2024 spitzack dodo bird imposter woodcut woodblock mokuhanga seattle art artist print printmaking
Iris Marechal Ney
Etching
Magnolia
Etching
Magnolia Nigra I
Copper sulphate etching
Magnolia Nigra II
Copper sulphate etching
Magnolia Nigra III
Copper sulphate etching
Corrupted Eagle
2009
Etching and relief on paper
Rose
Woodblock print
Hanazakari- Avenue of Cherry Trees in full bloom
Woodblock print
Dutch Iris
Woodblock print
Dutch Iris
Woodblock print
Lotus
Woodblock print
Parrot on a branch of magnolia
Woodblock print
Parrot on a branch of magnolia
Woodblock print
Peony
Woodblock print
Peony
Woodblock print
Peony
Woodblock print
Peony
Woodblock print
Peony
Woodblock print
Peony
Woodblock print
True Pictures of Famous Places in Tokyo: Wisteria at Kameido
Woodblock print
Chinese bell flower
Woodblock print
Sample work 02 — flower / tree (cedar woodblock series)
Woodblock print on washi (cedar boards)
"Iris, purple"
Woodblock print
"Potted Chrysanthemum", Bonsai
Woodblock print
Lotus Garden
Woodblock print
Flower cart
Woodblock print
Camellia
Woodblock print
Camellia D
Woodblock print
Camellia G- Tsubaki- LE
Woodblock print
Camellia I- le
Woodblock print
Woodpecker B- LE
Woodblock print
Camellia
Woodblock print
Black Crow
Woodblock print
BLACK CROW IN RAIN
Woodblock print
Camellia
Woodblock print
Iris at Horikiri, from
Woodblock print
Wisteria at Kameido — 亀井戸藤
Woodblock print
Peony in Rain
Woodblock print
Fluffy Owl Looks Out
2003
Mezzotint
Owl with Waterfall
2002
Mezzotint
Blue Iris
Woodblock print
Two Iris
Woodblock print
Murnong Yam Daisy
2020
Etching and aquatint
Watertank, Magnolia
Woodcut
San Mon Ban (Flower)
Woodblock print
San Mon Ban (Rose)
Woodblock print
Watchful Eye Kea Bird
Master of the Monster Bird III
Etching and aquatint
Chapter 44 - Takegawa- Courtiers under a wisteria draped pine tree
Woodblock print
Chapter 6 - Suetsumuhana- Saffron Flower
Woodblock print
Chrysanthemum Garden (Kiku-batake), from the series Beauties Matched with Flowers (Bijin hana kurabe)
Woodblock print
Famous Views and Beautiful Women: The Iris at Sekiguchi
Woodblock print
Related Subjects
Frequently Asked Questions
Birds and flowers (kacho-ga) form one of the three classical subject categories of East Asian painting, alongside landscapes and figures. In Japanese woodblock printmaking, the tradition produced some of the medium's most technically accomplished works, demanding exceptional carving precision for feather details and botanical accuracy.
Sugiura Kazutoshi, Ohara Koson, and Kimura Yoshiharu are among the artists most associated with birds & flowers in our collection. Browse the full list of artists who explored this subject above.
Hanga currently catalogues 1639 prints tagged with birds & flowers, spanning ukiyo-e, shin-hanga, and sōsaku-hanga traditions where applicable.