Cleveland Museum of Art

Snails

Nagasawa Rosetsu

Date

c. 1788–89

Medium

Hanging scroll; ink, color, and metallic pigments on paper

Culture

Japan, Edo period (1615–1868)

Department

Japanese Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

In this work, Nagasawa Rosetsu carefully described two snails in a manner known as “earth painting” ( doro-e ), building up colors mixed with crushed white shells in emulation of the thick brushstrokes of oil paint seen in European painting. A silvery metallic pigment indicates the snails’ trails, glistening along an earthen wall. Notably, one trail has no snail, leaving the viewer to guess why. Rosetsu was an independent painter active in Kyoto, Japan's cultural capital, known for his visual wit and superb range of technical skills.

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