Chickens and Chrysanthemums

This large-scale painting of a pair of chickens surrounded by blossoming chrysanthemums, was brushed by one of the most important Japanese literati, or scholarly, painters of the late 19th century. The artist was a fifth generation literati painter whose dates of activity coincide with Japan's newly emerging international presence. Although Yukoku must be regarded as an inheritor of traditional styles and subjects, modernist influences derived from the West do appear in his work. These are especially evident in the sketchy treatment of the rooster's feathers. Yukoku learned how to delineate birds and flowers with a faint background wash and how to depict chrysanthemums realistically with meticulous brushwork. Yukoku specialized in birds-and-flowers, especially chrysanthemums. He was an active participant in early modern artists' organizations as well as an influential teacher.