Rinpa school

Rinpa takes its name from the “rin” of Ogata Kōrin; it has also been called the Sōtatsu–Kōrin school, and the name was never unified. Unlike the Kanō and Tosa schools, it had no post as official painters and no inheritance by family: Kōrin took up Sōtatsu's work by admiration, and Sakai Hōitsu took up Kōrin's. In 1815, the hundredth anniversary of Kōrin's death, Hōitsu published a book of his work, which became a foundation for the study of Rinpa. It rests on the tradition of Yamato-e, with gold and silver, clear colors, and bold use of space. Its favorite subjects are tales such as the Tales of Ise and seasonal plants, and its signature technique is tarashikomi, which Sōtatsu devised. Sōtatsu also left many fine screens. The school reached into crafts: Kōetsu's lacquer, Kenzan's ceramics, and “Kōrin patterns” on cloth.

Notice the repeated shapes, whether flocks of cranes, flowers, or waves, and how they are spaced across the gold. The Tokyo National Museum notes that in Kōrin's screens of cranes the birds are spaced rhythmically with similar forms, like patterns on a kimono.