Sumi, color, gofun, and gold flecks on paper. In addition, this piece contains a unique woodblock print technique that utilizes gofun, a ground oyster shell treatment. As a result, the forest sprites featured in this piece are hidden to the viewer until viewed from the right perspective.The inscribed poem is done in the waka style and reads, “A twig broken is a sin, here at Togano’o… so permit me, some fallen leaves, O guardians of these autumn hills.” [Sold]

Before styles such as Raku, Hagi, Karatsu, etc came into fashion for use in the tearoom in early Edo, it was commonplace in cultured society to use tea-ware imported from China. In fact, some pottery styles uniquely Japanese (such as Shino) are thought to have been born out of unsuccessful attempts to emulate these extremely high-quality and refined ceramics. The number of such pieces imported was so great that today it is not uncommon for Chinese collectors to visit Japan in search of authentic porcelains from the Song Dynasty and later.[Sold]

Sumi and color on paper. This piece by well-known Taisho period artist Tomita Keisen depicts foresters riding log rafts down the Uji-gawa. Keisen was trained in classical painting and was well-versed in the Kano and Shijo school traditions. Despite his classical roots, he strove to develop his own unique style of painting. [Sold]

A native of Nagoya, a bustling Japanese center for shipping and trade in Late Edo, Baiitsu was heavily influenced by works of Chinese art, especially the naturalistic landscapes that made their way into Japan through this port city. Over time he came to paint almost exclusively birds in various landscapes and gained a reputation for his brushwork, exceptional attention to detail, and as he termed it the “spirit” he imbued in a completed work. [Sold]