GASSHO-ZUKURI FARMHOUSES SHIRAKAWAGO Painting

Gassho-Zukuri Farmhouses, Shirakawago, Oil on canvas - 2023 Life without nature is joyless. After composing a few sketches of Shirakawago village, I turned to paint the Gassho-Zukuri farmhouses nestling surrounding mountains and the waterlily lakefront. As I stroked the brush and captured the scene with natural-looking oil colors on canvas, I felt like transcending places and walking through those houses. Gassho-Zukuri farmhouses, Shirakawago, located in a mountainous region of Gifu, Japan, has been cut off from the rest of the world for years. Some houses are over 250 years old. Characterized by a thatched and slanted roof with a 60 degree slope, the exterior form a nearly equilateral triangle, resembling hands bound together in prayers. The slanted roof, made without nails, helps the snow slide off the edges and provides warmth. The houses are spacious, three to four stories high, with low eaves. More so, strong hand-woven ropes bind together the gigantic cedar pillars and beams in the house, and on top lies a signature 3 feet thick thatched roof. The style of Gassho-Zukuri resembles the prayer pose or the pressing together of hands like during Buddhist prayers. The historic villages of Shirakawago, together with Gokayama in Nanto, Toyama, are among the UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Painting:Oil on Canvas

Original:One-of-a-kind Artwork

Size:35.4 W x 47.2 H x 1.2 D in

Delivery Time:Typically 5-7 business days for domestic shipments, 10-14 business days for international shipments.