Yamato-e painting, developed in Japan’s golden age, the Heian period, is a classical Japanese style of painting which interprets the beauty of nature and the changing seasons. These highly detailed paintings often depict narratives, landscapes and the four seasons Shiki-e. Many Japanese festivals and rituals follow the seasons - spring is regarded as the first season and a breath of fresh air as buds begin to blossom upon the trees and shoots push their heads through the ground.

Each season comes in a matching box covered in luxury silk screen printed Japanese paper. Each box is made from a different segment of the print and so the pattern may vary. 
Very useful too, a letterpress swatch card featuring each individual colour name is included to be painted in for colour referencing. This can come in handy as appearances can be deceiving and each colour is only revealed once wet and set to paper!
There is no overlap in terms of colours between the 4 season sets, each set includes 20 distinct colours.
We recommend the Aquarella (off-white) and Aquarello (white) for the perfect paper pairing.

Length: 20cm
Width: 15cm
Depth: 1.4cm
Weight: 263g
Material: Gansai watercolour paints, plastic, cardboard, paper 
Included: 20 colours in chiyogami paper presentation box and including a blank letterpress swatch card which can be painted in for colour reference. 
Vegetarian/Vegan: No (contains gelatine glue binder)
Safety: Non-toxic

Made in Japan

Colours Included
18 - Murasaki - Purple 
56 - Rai-Gunsho: A blend of indigo and ultramarine blue pigments prepared into a paste for Nihonga painting, screen painting or textile dying.
127 - Aokusa - Grass green 
49 - Shiro-midori - White green 
155 - Joushu - Upper vermillion 
211 - Aketsuchi - Earthy crimson 
41 - Botan - Peony
40 - Natane-iro - Rapeseed 
57 - Kouhaku - Yellow-white
73 - Rumi Opera - Luminous opera pink 
206 - Midori - Green 
47 - Hatoba - Usually translated to mean blue-black in the context of colour, but literally translating to ‘pigeon wing’, this bold pink references the lighter parts of pigeon feathers. 
202 - Nadeshiko-iro - This pink is named after the family of flowers we call ‘pinks’ rather than the colour itself: Dianthus. 
65 - Paaru Aka - Pearlescent red 
201 - Akebono-iro - This light pink literally translates to ‘daybreak colour’: Picture the lightest and subtlest shades in the clouds at dawn. 
10 - Taisha - Taishan Red; this could also be translated as ‘old Chinese mountain red’
20 - Wakaba - Fresh leaves 
214 - Hiwa-iro - From the Japanese mahiwa which is the name for the eurasian siskin - a small bird in the finch family which has striking yellow-green feathers.
67 - Paaru Kimodori - Pearlescent pea green
1 - Enji - Shortened from enjimushi which is the Japanese name for the insect from which the deep red dye carmine is derived. A synthetic alternative is used today.

These Japanese artist watercolours are made from a blend of natural minerals, plant gums, and approved artist pigments to produce rich, vibrant colour that’s safe and non-toxic. They contain no heavy metals such as lead or cadmium and are classed as non-hazardous under UK safety regulations. The paints are odourless, water-soluble, and suitable for adult artistic use only. Avoid eating, drinking, or smoking while painting, and wash hands after use. If paint gets in your eyes, rinse well with clean water; if swallowed, rinse your mouth and seek advice if unwell. Store in a cool, dry place away from sunlight and keep out of reach of children and pets. Allow rinse water to settle before disposal and throw away the dried residue responsibly, rather than pouring coloured water straight down the drain. These paints are safe to handle, transport, and use when used as intended for art and creative work.

Calcium carbonate, kaolin, gum arabic, starch sugar, glycerin, water, colour pigments.