Kawabata Gyokusho (1842-1913) was born in Kyoto into a family of lacquer painters. At a young age, Kawabata demonstrated a talent for painting. From the age of eleven, he took lessons from the renowned painters Nakajima Raisho and Oda Kai. In 1866, Kawabata moved to Tokyo, where he established himself as an independent artist. Within a few years, he had become one of the leading figures in the Tokyo art world. In 1878, he founded his own painting school. Kawabata's fame even brought him to the Imperial Palace, where he was appointed court painter. The fan in the "De Witte Zwaan" Collection exemplifies the sumi-e drawing style, in which only black ink was used to create the design. Landscape paintings, in particular, became popular subjects for fans. A large iris decoration, executed in various shades of black ink, is applied to the center of the fan's surface in simple yet graceful lines.