All three dated works by Sen Hitto survived today were executed during the Horeki era (1751–1764). The present painting is dated “Jingo-chushu-jitsu”, the eighth month of 1762, by the artist. A month earlier, he is known to have painted Chrysanthemums, Rock and Little Birds, which was included in the exhibition Wagana wa Kakutei (I am Kakutei) held in Nagasaki and Kobe in 2016. In terms of composition, this work is very similar to the present one, with a rock standing upright on the ground. The birds depicted in both paintings are of the same kind, despite the chrysanthemum-rose variation. Another work, dated “the fifth month, 1753” and included in the Kinsei Osaka gadan (Osaka Painters in the Edo Period) exhibition at the Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts, represents chrysanthemums behind a blue-colored rock. Koga biko (Notes on Old Paintings) records Hitto’s inscription on a painting dated “the fouth month, 1756,” reading “I imitated the style of Shen Nanpin.” Shen’s influence is clearly demonstrated in all three dated works mentioned above. Nevertheless, the flat representation of the leaves of chrysanthemums and roses conveys Hitto’s decorative extravagancy in contrast to Shen’s strenuous realism.

The painter’s inscription of the present painting is a couplet from Poem on Rose by Zhu Qing’yu, a Tang dynasty poet. The poem is included in vol. 514 of Zentoshi (Complete Tang Poems). Hitto replaced the sixth character “fu” (floating) to “chong” (overlapping) here. The couplet reads: “Rose vines dangle from all directions, and their overlapping shadows are cool in summer.”

Sen Hitto (painter; d. 1764)
Also known as Kokei; Jorakan
Osaka-born mid Edo period painter and calligrapher. His real name is Tei. Inspired to become a painter since young. Excelled at the Nanpin style, and painted a great many of sansui (landscape) and kacho (flower-and-bird) works. Learned calligraphy under Niioki Mosho, and was recognized as a calligrapher as well.