hasegawa sotaku: A Pioneer of Monochrome Landscape Painting hasegawa sotaku (長谷川 等伯; 1539 – March 19, 1610) stands as one of Japan’s most revered painters of the Azuchi–Momoyama period (1574–1603), a pivotal era marked by unification and artistic innovation. Born Okumura Tōhaku in Nanau Province (present-day Ishikawa Prefecture), his early life was steeped in the traditions of cloth dyeing, yet he swiftly ascended to prominence as a m…