Mount Fuji Viewed from the Imai Ferry on the Tone River, Shimosa Province

司馬江漢筆 「下総国利根川今井渡」

This view of the traditional subject of Mount Fuji is an example of so-called “mud painting” (doro-e), a Japanese medium Shiba Kokan concocted in order to reproduce the effect of European oil paintings. The depiction of the blue sky with soft, white clouds and the diminution of scale of the sailboats as they recede into the distance both derive from Western painting.

Kokan was one of the most versatile and adventurous artists of the Edo period. He learned about Western science and art from the limited number of books and other materials then available in Japan. Here, the artist has signed his name in roman letters. Kokan rendered Mount Fuji from different viewpoints in varying mediums and formats. He loved this sacred mountain and wrote passionately and with great scientific precision about its geologic formation and volcanic activities.