Mishima Shōsō (1852-1914) was a nihonga painter trained in the Maruyama-Shijo school of painting. He was the pupil of Yōsai Kikuchi. Bird-and-flower painter Seitei Watanabe, a friend of Kikuchi, introduced Mishima to illustration and print design. Mishima became an active kuchi-e (frontispiece illustration) artist, working mainly with the publisher Shun’yodo and the popular literary magazine Bungei kurabu. According to Frederic Sharf, it was Suzuki Kason who likely introduced Hasegawa Takejirō to Mishima, since Suzuki and Mishima trained together in the workshop of Yōsai. By 1893, Mishima was part of Hasegawa’s stable team along with Suzuki Kason and Arai Yoshimune. An interesting aside: Mishima is known for being a fan of printmaker Tōshūsai Sharaku. He amassed a large collection of Sharaku prints before losing them in a fire.