Fishing in Springtime

Ike Taiga was subject to many artistic influences; we know he practiced Zen calligraphy from an early age, his father may have had ties to the famous painter Ōgata Kōrin (1658–1716), he may have trained under a Tosa school painter, and he is thought to have seen Western images early on that informed his approach in representing depth. Though he started with professional beginnings—making a living after his father’s death by selling paintings on fans—he surrounded himself with the members of the literati community, and never stopped absorbing stylistic influences from diverse sources throughout his career. As a result, his style is unique and aesthetically definitive of nanga—the name given to Japanese literati painting.