Riga Shikishi Gallery – Japanese calligraphy, paintings and drawings on shikishi
A traditional Japanese art format
Shikishi is a traditional Japanese art format used for calligraphy, painting, and drawing in ink, watercolor, and mixed media.
This section presents a curated and growing selection of original shikishi works, organized by theme. Selected works are available for purchase via Etsy.
Shikishi boards are typically made with a washi paper surface mounted on a rigid backing. They may feature ink brushwork, watercolor pigments, or mixed media techniques, sometimes enhanced with subtle decorative details.
This section presents a curated and growing selection of original shikishi works, organized by theme. Selected works are available for purchase via Etsy.
Shikishi boards are typically made with a washi paper surface mounted on a rigid backing. They may feature ink brushwork, watercolor pigments, or mixed media techniques, sometimes enhanced with subtle decorative details.
New article
HISTORY OF THE EMERGENCE OF MODERN SHIKISHI FORMATS
From Edo Poetry Sheets to a Twentieth-Century Industrial Standard
From Edo Poetry Sheets to a Twentieth-Century Industrial Standard
The modern shikishi format — approximately 24 × 27 cm (about 242 × 273 mm) — is widely perceived as traditional. It is used for calligraphy, nihonga painting, commemorative inscriptions, temple works, and artistic presentation. Yet this size is not an ancient canonical standard. It emerged gradually through Japan’s modernization, the introduction of Western technologies, the development of the paper industry, and the standardization of commercial formats in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
This article brings together historical, material, and industrial evidence in order to trace how the contemporary shikishi format was formed and stabilized.
This article brings together historical, material, and industrial evidence in order to trace how the contemporary shikishi format was formed and stabilized.
View available works on Etsy