Tanomura Chikuden (田能村竹田, 1777-1835) was a literati painter who was born in the feudal fiefdom of Oka, Kyushu during the late Edo period and became active in artistic endeavors across the Kansai region, mainly in Kyoto and Osaka, and other regions such as Nagasaki. Tanomura strived to establish his own theory of painting by penning books on the subject such as The Recluse ’s Tattle (山中人 饒 舌, Sanchūjin jōzetsu) and Records of Chikuden’s Teachers and Friends ( 竹田莊師友畵錄, Chikudensō shiyū garoku). A closer look into his paintings and theory reveals that the foundation of his work consisted of paintings from the Ming and Qing periods as was the case with many literati painter in the 18 th and 19th centuries. His painting style developed through his interactions with numerous painters across the Kansai region and his exposure to Chinese paintings and literature imported into Nagasaki. Tanomura Chikuden travelled twenty-five times in his entire life. Aside from trips taken in his early life for government duties, the majority of his trips were to the Kansai region, and the purpose was to study poetry and painting and to socialize with scholars. The artistic domain of the Kansai region at the time, which was led by Kimura Kenkado ( 木村蒹葭堂, 1736-1802) of Osaka, was steeped in the literati culture of the Ming period, and popular painting styles there included those of the Wu school (吳派) and the School of Four Wangs (四王), which were preserved in Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces.