Golden pheasants on a tree in the snow

Golden Pheasants on a Tree in the Snow (Setchū Kinkei-zu) is a polychrome hanging-scroll painting on silk that was created in Kyoto during the Edo period, circa 1761–1765. With about 142.3 × 79.5 cm dimensions, it is part of the renowned Dōshoku Sai-e (Colorful Realm of Living Beings) series of thirty scrolls. The scene depicts two golden pheasants in a snow-covered landscape, with a flowering camellia visible in the foreground. The male pheasant is instantly noticeable by its vibrant red, yellow, green, brown, black and white feathers and the snow and plants that surround him, provide a great contrast between bright color and muted winter hues. Rather than a realistic representation of winter, Jakuchū has made his nature into a strangely controlled and almost other worldly arrangement. The snow is very notable; instead of being light and powdery, it looks thick, wet and almost melting. The effect was created using urazaishiki (裏彩色) or reverse painting, which involves using white pigment on the back as well as the front of the silk. The pheasants' feathers are rendered in fine linear detail and layers of pigments, displaying Jakuchū's remarkable technical precision. Mineral pigments and dyes, however, have been found in his technique—his advanced use of them in Dōshoku Sai-e stands in contrast to the mere use of surface colour. The work is from the National Treasure Dōshoku Sai-e, which is preserved at the Museum of the Imperial Collections, Sannomaru Shōzōkan, Tokyo. The whole series was donated to Shōkoku-ji Temple in Kyoto by Jakuchū in 1765 and in 1890 was transferred to the Imperial Collection. In 2021, the series became a National Treasure.