[Audio Guide]
On the banks of the Thames in London, rain-soaked streets and bridges reflect the light of streetlamps, and the entire image is softly blurred as befits the city of fog. A group of people bundled up in coats congregates at a brightly lit stall. The colors of light, both warm and cool, melt into the moist air, evoking a refreshing sensation as they drift through the space. Originally from the village of Koromo (present-day Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture), Makino Yoshio moved to the UK in the late 19th century. He made a name for himself with lyrical landscape paintings of the city and people of London, and essays describing his life there. Makino was apparently greatly impressed with the work of J.M.W. Turner, one of the greatest British landscape painters. The fresh yet ambiguous rendering of air and light and the fantastical atmosphere of this work show Makino fully in control of the influences he absorbed from Turner.
The light from the streetlights is diffused by the mist, which renders the outlines of the buildings and the sense of perspective as ambiguous. The silhouette of a stutue of Eros emerges majestically from this hazy night city. London’s Piccadilly Circus is a busy location even today, as it is the place where several major roads converge. This painting reflects it appearance at the beginning of the 20th century, with people wrapped up in coats and carriages going back and forth. Makino Yoshio was an artist and essayist from Koromo village (now Toyota city, Aichi prefecture). He moved to London at the end of the 19th century, and quickly became famous for his lyrically painted works of people and street scenes. Makino adored London, particularly the city’s smog that shrouded daily life and transformed it into a fantastical landscape. This work was published as the frontispiece to a book that introduced the wonders of London. This work exemplifies the qualities for which Makino was recognized as “the painter of mist.”
