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
Iris No. 4
Woodblock print
Iris No. 161 - 花菖蒲 161
Woodblock print
Flower, 2002
Woodblock print
Heron in rain
Woodblock print
Two Ladies Talking to Flower Peddler (descriptive title)
Woodblock print
Torch Lights on Fishing Boats- Cormorant Fishing
Woodblock print
Hydrangea Garden, Outskirts of Odawara at Evening
Woodblock print
Fire Bird
1980
Etching, ink and color on paper
Bird and cherry blossoms - V1 — 桜と小鳥
Woodblock print
Bird and flowers in snow 2
Woodblock print
Chrysanthemum (Yellow and White)
Woodblock print
Crane
Woodblock print
Iris — あやめ
Woodblock print
Crow Resting on Wood Trunk
Woodblock print
Dahlia
Woodblock print
Iris
Woodblock print
Orchid 1
Woodblock print
Peony
Woodblock print
Tree peony
Woodblock print
Wisteria
Woodblock print
Iris (Shobu), No. 2 from the series "Flowers of Japan Series (Nihon no hana rensaku)"
1974
Color woodblock print; edition 1/80
Crow in Moonlight
月に烏
c. 1927
Color woodblock print
Crow on Cherry Branch
桜に烏
c. 1910
Color woodblock print
Azalea in Pot
c. 1928–1930
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Eagle Under Rain
雨中の鷲
c. 1927
Color woodblock print
Frog on Lotus Leaf
蓮の葉の蛙
c. 1930
Color woodblock print
Hawk on Snowy Branch
雪中の鷹
c. 1920
Color woodblock print
Heron in Snow
雪中の白鷺
c. 1920
Color woodblock print
Iris and Kingfisher
菖蒲に翡翠
c. 1925
Color woodblock print
Kingfisher on Reed
葦に翡翠
c. 1910
Color woodblock print
Owl on Ginkgo Branch
銀杏に木菟
c. 1927
Color woodblock print
Rooster and Hen
鶏
c. 1912
Color woodblock print
Songbird and Lotus
蓮に小鳥
c. 1930
Color woodblock print
Bird (Tori)
1960
Color woodblock print
Bird in the Night - B
Woodblock print
Birds and Camellia
Woodblock print
Red Flower Vase
Woodblock print
Girl and Flower
Woodblock print
Akizuki no musume, Miyuki, Shoga no asagao (Miyuki, daughter of Akizuki, Morning glory) / Tosei mitate sanju-rokkasen 當盛見立 三十六花撰 (Contemporary Kabuki Actors Likened to Thirty-Six Flowers (Immortals of Poetry))
Kingfisher on Flowering Branch
Iris Garden at the Katsura Imperial Villa
1955
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
The Water Lily Season
1959
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Fubaika B (Anemophilous Flower B)
Woodblock print
Little Flower - 小さい花
Woodblock print
No. 2 - Iris Kimono - あやめゆかた
1932
Woodblock print
Bird and Fox
1958
Woodblock print
Buddha with Flower
Woodblock print
Camellia D- LE
Woodblock print
The Hawk Princess
1955
Woodblock print
Woman with Uto Bird
1956
Woodblock print
Cherry blossom time — 花時
Woodblock print
Little Flora- LE — 花
Woodblock print
Rooster Running
Woodblock print
Sacred Crane- B- LE
Woodblock print
Sacred Crane - C
Woodblock print
Small Bird C- LE
Woodblock print
Small Bird C- oban
Woodblock print
Small Bird (Kotori)
1957
Color woodblock print
Small Birds — 小鳥
Woodblock print
Snow Camellia, LE
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.