Peacocks and Cherry Tree. Artist: Imazu Tatsuyuki (Japanese, active early 20th century). Culture: Japan. Dimensions: Image: 80 1/8 × 72 13/16 in. (203.5 × 185 cm). Date: ca. 1925.Against the brilliantly rendered background of a cherry tree in full bloom, a peacock is perched upon a branch with its tail feathers gloriously arrayed while the peahen with subdued plumage looks upwards towards her flamboyant companion. The nearly pristine layers of thickly applied mineral pigments cover the entire surface of this tour-de-force of modern painting. Characteristic of nihonga (Japanese-style paintings) of the early twentieth century, the work has an overall feeling of flatness and an emphasis on the surface due to the inherent nature of the thick mineral pigments. At the same time the artist creates a sense of volume and simple perspective in the way the tree branches are modeled and in the placement of the rock in front of the river bank where the peahen stands. The cherry blossoms that fill