A student of the famous painter Sakai Hoitsu (1761–1828),[1] he was for a long time considered a minor member of Rinpa school of Japanese painting.
[2] In recent years his work has been reevaluated and gained recognition,[3][4] leading to a series of major exhibitions of his art in 2016–2017 in Tokyo, Hyogo and Kyoto.
[8] Mountain Stream in Summer and Autumn is a pair of six-panel byōbu folding screens made by Kiitsu using ink and color on gold-foiled paper.
[9] It depicts "a scene of mountain streams flowing through cypress groves highlighted by lilies and a cherry tree with a few red autumn leaves" but the effect of the screens has been described as "somehow strangely unreal" and "[having] a feeling of almost hyperrealism".
[11] Another features noted in relation with Kōrin's Irises screens include "the rhythmical feel of the motifs and the brilliance of the blues and greens against the gold ground".
[12] The work shows influence of Tawaraya Sōtatsu, Ogata Kōrin and Sakai Hōitsu[13] and has been described as "one of the great masterpieces of Rinpa painting".