Grasshopper and gourd vine

Shibata Zeshin is best known for his lacquer objects and lacquer paintings, but he also produced highly refined works in other mediums. This delicate scene is executed on silk in the ink and mineral pigments of traditional Japanese painting. Here, a single grasshopper balances on one leg on a vine whose stems and delicate tendrils form an elegant openwork pattern. A tiny green gourd hangs below the insect, while a single white blossom and tightly furled buds hold the promise of fruit to come.

In the 1830s, Zeshin studied painting in Kyoto under Okamoto Toyohiko (1773–1845), a leader of the Shijo school, known for its emphasis on sketching from life. This work may have been produced during that early phase of Zeshin's career. Its composition documents Zeshin's formal training as a painter, his meticulous skill, and his close attention to details of the natural world.