Gahou

Gekko's Gahou (Gekko's Artwork) is one of the triumphs of his middle years. The prints from this set are rarely found with the exception of the images of the Mallard and the Sea Bream and even these are not common. The set is comprised of 12 images and a title page. The Smithsonian appears to have a set of the images but perhaps not the title page, the images do not appear in the online catalogues of any of the other major Western public galleries with significant collections of Japanese art. The Metropolitan Library of Tokyo has them in book form which includes a publication colophon listing key details

The series itself shows a variety of natural scenes very much in the Maruyama Shijo style plus one rather amusing illustration of a monkey dressed as an artist, perhaps this is Gekko making fun of himself. The level of finesse in this work is outstanding and several of the prints highlight Gekko's pioneering use of the sashiagi printing technique which imitates the brush strokes of a painting. The prints are listed here in the order they appear on the title page and the title given where translated.

title page