Images(2)

Horse grazing under a tree

Artist Chiura Obata (American, 1885 - 1975)

Place of OriginSan Francisco

DateApprox. 1906-1907

MaterialsWatercolor and graphite on paper

DimensionsOverall: H. 5 1/4 in × W. 8 in (13.3 cm × 20.3 cm)

Credit LineGift from the Estate of Chiura Obata

Object number2021.52

DepartmentJapanese Art

ClassificationsPainting

On View

Not on view

InscribedVerso inscription: 葡萄、桃、なす、アモンズ、フィツグス、ドライピーチ、レーズン、ユカリップス English translation of verso inscription: Grapes, peaches, eggplants, almonds, figs, dried peaches, raisins, and eucalyptus

More Information

The back side of this bucolic country scene bears a list of fruits and vegetables beside a drawing that may be the design for a garden plot. Obata’s descendants believe this to be a sketch completed in the months following the earthquake. In a 1965 interview, he spoke of the optimism that supported him during the worst months of 1906:

Even during those times, I was never pessimistic, I never lost hope. I just learned that however violent is nature, like an earthquake, there is always a way to live if we try our best. I had a nickel when I went to Lafayette Square and after six months when I left I still had a nickel.