Pine trees, water and clouds
17th century
Classification
Painting
Department
Smithsonian Collection
Museum
Smithsonian American Art Museum
Credit
Gift of Charles Lang Freer
Accession Number
F1903.13
Tags
About this artwork
Japanese painters often depict the verdant landscapes of their native land in rich, opaque colors. The paintings on the paper surfaces of these sliding-door panels once adorned a room in an elite residence, providing an illusion of a view toward a scenic landscape of a pine grove growing along a shoreline. For large-scale paintings like these, gold leaf depicts clouds, mist, and hills. In their original architectural settings, the gold created subtle, transient reflections.
About the Artist
Unknown
The artist designated as "Unknown" in our virtual museum's collection exemplifies a poignant chapter in art history: creators whose identities have faded into obscurity despite the enduring power of their work. With only one known artwork attributed to them in our holdings, this figure represents countless anonymous hands that shaped visual culture across centuries. Museums worldwide, including th...