Details

A procession of penguins winds across a vast, snow-covered expanse in this rare Antarctic view by Toshi Yoshida—an atmospheric and subtly expressive work from his late-career polar explorations. The gentle flurry of snowfall is evoked through an intricate texture of carved lines and soft tonality, suggesting both motion and silence. The landscape stretches into infinity beneath a subdued sky, hemmed by distant basaltic ridges and framed by looming dark rock formations. The birds—small in scale but full of character—embody a quiet perseverance as they journey together through this dreamlike wilderness.

With restrained color and a minimal palette, Yoshida conveys not desolation but wonder. There is no drama here, only the rhythmic pulse of life continuing amidst elemental forces. The print invites the viewer to consider the harmony of small creatures with the enormity of nature, rendered in a scene that feels both intimate and eternal.

Connoisseur's Note

Snowing stands among Yoshida’s most quietly poetic prints—a meditation on movement, community, and endurance in a land shaped by ice and time. The presence of penguins, rendered with tender attention to posture and rhythm, introduces a rare narrative quality into the artist’s otherwise serene landscape. They become not only animals of the Antarctic, but pilgrims in a devotional landscape, traversing a white field that seems both physical and symbolic.

In the Japanese artistic tradition, snow (yuki) often carries spiritual weight—a symbol of purity, transience, and the cleansing quiet of winter. Yoshida channels that resonance here, allowing the empty space of the snowfield to speak as powerfully as any inked form.

This work is a rare Artist Proof and signed by the artist in pencil in the lower margin.