Anno Mitsumasa, part 2

We've talked about Anno Mitsumasa's whimsical sense of humour and Western-influenced travel books. This week we look at the illustrator's more traditional work, his sense of drama and awareness of scenic beauty.

Anno's picture book The Tale of the Old Man Who Made Trees Blossom is a wonder of paper art, with even the words of the story skilfully cut out. Smoke, water, grass and trees seem to flow out of the stark black and white pages.

The climax of the story is an astonishing bloom of pink sakura petals from a seemingly dead tree.

Anno is also a master of what art history calls the Sublime, the tradition of evoking terror and awe as well as beauty in his painting. In his series Tale of the Heike, he used Nihonga (painting with traditional Japanese methods and materials) to convey the drama and power of historic events.

Using diluted powder pigments and ink on silk fabric, he painted scenes of cataclysmic effect.

The same methods also revealed scenes of stillness and beauty, creating an atmosphere of emotional intensity in the story.

Some decades after his travel illustrations in Europe became famous, Anno turned his observant eye and unique style to his own home. He illustrates his home of Tsuwano with an almost fantastical, symbolic style, like a master painter adapting a child's drawing.

His gorgeous watercolour series of Kyoto, In and Around the Capital, capture the glowing beauty of Japan's former capital and its surrounding countryside.

We left Japan House dazed with colour and imagery. Maybe someday we can visit the Anno Museum and the places that so inspired this master of illustration!