A stunning, tall six-panel byôbu 屏風 (folding screen) featuring a refined painting by Taniguchi Hideo 谷口英雄 (1908–?), rendered on a gleaming golden silk. The composition depicts a field filled with young pine saplings 初音 (hatsune). In Japanese culture, the evergreen pine is a potent symbol of longevity, good fortune, and unwavering virtue. Closely associated with the New Year, pine saplings have long embodied renewal and rebirth. In ancient custom, these seedlings were uprooted during the first Day of the Rat to be used in herbal New Year dishes—a ritual believed to grant long life and spiritual renewal. A practice known as komatsubiki 小松引き. In the lower left corner, the painting bears a signature and double name seal: ‘Hideo’ 英雄 Taniguchi Hideo 谷口英雄 (1908–?) was a Japanese-style painter (nihonga 日本画) born in Kyôto 京都. He graduated from the Kyôto School of Painting 京都絵画専門学校 and studied under Yamamoto Shunkyô 山元春挙 and Nishiyama Suishô 西山翠嶂, two leading figures of modern Kyôto painting. Taniguchi was repeatedly awarded at the Teiten 帝展 and Shin-Bunten 新文展 exhibitions, and later received a Special Prize (tokusen 特選) at the Nitten 日展. Working within the Kyôto tradition, his painting reflects the refined brushwork and compositional balance associated with the Shijô and Maruyama lineages as transmitted through his teachers. Colour and ink is set on golden silk on a paper base. Encased by a black lacquer wooden frame with protective copper hardware. Period: Japan - Shôwa period (1926-1989) Dimensions: Total width: 378.4 cm (2 x 64.4 cm, 4 x 62.4 cm); Height: 173 cm. In very good restored condition, with expected signs of age on both sides. Please refer to the photos for a detailed condition reference. The folding screen is well-suited for mounting flat on a wall and presenting as a single work of art. When shipped, we will include a certificate of authenticity.