All culture is influenced by the nature that surrounds it. It has been formed by reacting to its nature. Some have feared it, made it philosophical, danced with it in joy, and some have tried very hard to conquer it. Japanese culture has observed it very carefully and embraced it. It has invited the pulse of nature into our lives and become resonant with it, and mindful of it.

Nikka Tanaka presented the viewers the pulse of a snowscape somewhere deep in a mountain on the small painting. With a few brush strokes and subtle colors, he created a landscape of a couple of houses buried in the snow, leaving most of the plane blank. He conveyed the coldness, and quietness through the expression of the houses cuddling each other having soft but heavy snow on their roofs, and dark sky encroaching announcing more snow to come. The pulse of nature and the pulse of people inside are reverberating.

About the Artist

One of the pupils of Toyohiko, the highly esteemed Shijo school painter, Tanaka, Nikka was active in the first part of the 19th century and is recognized as one of the significant artists of the Shijo school. He died in 1845, and though his birth date is not known, his work was highly regarded during his lifetime. His work was first recorded in 1815 in Kyoto, and his name is also mentioned in, Bunsei no koro no Monjo (Cultural Matters Heard in Bunsei era), a magazine published during the Bunsei era (1818 - 1829). During this time in Kyoto, Keibun and Toyohiko were considered the two most celebrated painters. As Toyohiko's pupil, Nikka was seen to have excellent brushwork, which was swift, elegant, and masterful. In his book, The Uninhibited Brush, Jack Hillier writes, “there are qualities in the painting of Tanaka, Nikka that almost lift him on the highest plane ... “ One of the pupils of Toyohiko, the highly esteemed Shijo school painter, Tanaka, Nikka was active in the first part of the 19th century and is recognized as one of the significant artists of the Shijo school. He died in 1845, and though his birth date is not known, his work was highly regarded during his lifetime. His work was first recorded in 1815 in Kyoto, and his name is also mentioned in, Bunsei no koro no Monjo (Cultural Matters Heard in Bunsei era), a magazine published during the Bunsei era (1818 - 1829). During this time in Kyoto, Keibun and Toyohiko were considered the two most celebrated painters. As Toyohiko's pupil, Nikka was seen to have excellent brushwork, which was swift, elegant, and masterful. In his book, The Uninhibited Brush, Jack Hillier writes, “there are qualities in the painting of Tanaka, Nikka that almost lift him on the highest plane ... “