Canvas - Hashimoto Kansetsu, Old Monkey with Cherry in Autumn
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Framed Canvas - Old Monkey with Cherry in Autumn by Hashimoto Kansetsu
Spice up your empty walls with this eye-catching framed canvas! This high-quality framed canvas - Old Monkey with Cherry in Autumn made of pine wood comes with rubber bumpers on the back corners and a wall mount that allows for easy hanging of the artwork. Additionally, the frame gives the canvas a cool floating effect!
• Frame: Pine
• Frame thickness: 3.18 cm (1.25″)
• Canvas fabric weight: 344 g/m² +/- 25 g/m² (10.15 +/- 0.74 oz/yd²)
• Open back
• With rubber bumpers on the back corners
• Hanging hardware attached
• Blank from the USA
Disclaimers:
- The framed canvases with brown and black frames have a black interior around the canvas, and the canvases with white frames have a white interior around the canvas.
- This product is not intended for sanding or cutting — this creates dust in the air that can irritate the lungs.
Canvas without frame
Looking for some flair for your office or home? Your search ends here! This canvas print - Old Monkey with Cherry in Autumn with vivid and fade-resistant colors is sure to catch the eye.
• 3.18 cm (1.25″) thick canvas fabric made of poly-cotton blend
• Canvas fabric weight: 344 g/m² +/- 25 g/m² (10.15 +/- 0.74 oz./yd.²)
• Lightfast
• Manually stretched over a solid wood stretcher frame
• Mounting brackets included
• Blank from the USA, Canada, Europe, Great Britain, or Australia
Hashimoto Kansetsu and the "Old Monkey with Cherry in Autumn" – The Quiet Melancholy of an Animal Master
When speaking of the great animal painters of Japan, one name immediately comes up: Hashimoto Kansetsu (1883–1945). The artist from Kyoto is considered one of the defining representatives of Nihonga painting, a style that combines traditional Japanese art with Chinese literati painting. Kansetsu was a sensitive observer of nature – someone who did not simply depict animals but made their inner world visible.
Among his numerous motifs, one stands out particularly: the “Old Monkey with Cherry in Autumn”. Even the title invites reflection. An aged monkey, a single cherry, the season of farewell. What seems simple turns out to be one of the most poetic animal depictions in modern Japanese art.
Who was Hashimoto Kansetsu?
Kansetsu lived in a time when Japan had to rediscover itself between tradition and modernity. The Nihonga movement sought exactly this balance. On travels through China, Kansetsu deepened his knowledge of classical ink techniques and developed a style characterized by restraint, fine lines, and emotional depth.
Especially animals – monkeys, tigers, birds – became for him carriers of human emotions. His monkeys often look thoughtfully into the distance, tigers appear exhausted or vulnerable, and even small birds seem to reflect the mood of the seasons.
The old monkey – a mirror of life
The work “Old Monkey with Cherry in Autumn” impressively shows how finely Kansetsu worked with symbols. The monkey is visibly aged, its fur messy, its gaze soft and inward. In its hands, it holds a cherry or a branch. The background remains empty – no distraction, only silence.
Why a monkey?
In East Asian art, the monkey symbolically represents humanity, spirit, and emotion. Due to its similarity to us, it is uniquely suited as a projection surface. An old monkey thus becomes a symbol of experience, vulnerability, and awareness of one’s own mortality.
And why a cherry in autumn?
The cherry – especially in the form of the cherry blossom – is considered a symbol of transience in Japan.
But in autumn it is no longer fresh and radiant. It appears as the last remnant of warm days, a delicate hint that winter is inevitable.
The interplay of old monkey, last cherry, and empty autumn landscape creates a scene that goes far beyond a mere animal depiction. It is a quiet contemplation of life itself.
The Poetry of Emptiness
Kansetsu masterfully knew how to achieve great impact with minimalism. The wide, unpainted areas around the monkey are not just background – they create space to breathe. In Japanese aesthetics, this principle is called Ma, the meaningful interval.
A space that grants calm.
A space that lets us listen.
A space where silence finds a voice.
An image you feel – not just see
Many viewers report that this work touches them in unexpected ways. Perhaps because we all know moments when we pause and look back. Perhaps because the delicate gesture with which the monkey holds the cherry reminds us of those small things that carry our lives.
Kansetsu succeeds in capturing a timeless feeling:
the quiet melancholy of autumn.
Why this work fascinates to this day
In a world that is loud and fast, an image like "Old Monkey with Cherry in Autumn" acts as a counterpoint – quiet, meditative, truthful.
It reminds us:
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that aging possesses a form of dignity
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that gentleness means strength
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that beauty lies in simplicity
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that silence tells stories
Kansetsu captures not just an animal, but the essence of a moment – with restraint, precision, and deep respect.
Final thoughts
Hashimoto Kansetsu understood like few others how to give animals humanity and dignity. The old monkey in autumn is an impressive example of this. Quiet and wise, he sits there as if pondering life itself – inviting us to do the same.
An image that lingers long.
An image that you don't forget quickly.
