Itō Jakuchū, Animals in the Flower Garden (Left-hand screen)

During the eighteenth century, honzōgaku, the study of the essence of plants and animals, developed into an academic discipline that closely resembles natural history. A large emphasis was placed on observing and recording nature, and as the discipline grew, scrolls that depicted non-native plants and animals became more widely available. Animals in the Flower Garden shows evidence of influence from these scrolls, especially through the inclusion of non-native animals, such as the turkey in the center-left screen. This painting uses a series of tight grids to place colors onto the design, introducing a sense of abstraction. While Jakūchu typically prioritized life-like depictions based on natural observations, Animals in the Flower Garden, is a major departure from this style. Perhaps Jakūchu was conceding that this piece was not a result of his observations, but a result of his imagination and interpretation instead.

Image credited to the Shizuoka Prefectural Museum of Art