Analyzing Asian 2D art

Monumental landscapes during the Northern Song dynasty are characterized by their use of three distinct perspectives in the composition: high distance, level distance, and deep distance.

Instead of painting in golden hued paint on the screen in his White and Red Plum Blossoms, Ogata Kōrin inlays actual gold leaf onto his work of art, having the gold dominate the work of art. This use of non-paint or ink materials in creating screens was a signature element of the Rinpa school, who also utilized items such as mother of pearl, although gold leaf was by far the most frequent material included in Rinpa school work.

Artwork from Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ogata\_Korin\_-\_RED\_AND\_WHITE\_PLUM\_BLOSSOMS\_(National\_Treasure)\_-\_Google\_Art\_Project.jpg

The Lion symbolizes Buddha's royal status. The Wheel denotes Buddha's law. The Lotus is a symbol of Buddha's natural origins. Trees are not a key symbol in the iconographic scheme of Buddhist art.

Folding screens are a central part of Japanese art due to their use in Japanese domestic architecture as dividers between different spaces. This meant that screens such as White and Red Plum Blossoms by Ogata Kōrin were central decorative objects in houses during the Edo Period of Japanese history. Ogata Kōrin's work was one of the key developments of folding screens as an art form.

Artwork from Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ogata\_Korin\_-\_RED\_AND\_WHITE\_PLUM\_BLOSSOMS\_(National\_Treasure)\_-\_Google\_Art\_Project.jpg