Story by Nelson Parrish

From atop Hokkaido’s rolling hills overlooking the Sea of Japan, while waist deep in virgin powder, I was struck by how much the ridges and trees resembled my hometown in Alaska. Yet, a closer examination revealed a deeper contrast—Alaska’s raw, untamed majesty versus Japan’s subtle, intricate beauty. Just as connections to landscapes shape culture and art, from Monet’s depictions of Paris to Remington’s paintings of the American West, Alaska’s raw grandeur inspires poets like Robert Service and get’r’done grit, while Japan’s refined stillness naturally births haiku and Zen philosophy. As there is no substitute for experience, being in this landscape firsthand deepened my understanding of fukinsei—finding harmony in asymmetry, balance in imperfection, and transcendence in contrast. Alaska’s vastness can become a moment, where in Japan, a single tiny moment becomes infinite. There are two sides of the same coin. 

Whether in Alaska’s primal peace or Japan’s refined solace, integrating with nature invokes a deeper truth: beauty exists in both the wild and the quiet. Both landscapes share the path to a better understanding of oneself, and the world of which we all belong.

R. Nelson Parrish is a multi-disciplinary fine artist, investigating the expansion and contraction of time in his fine art. Drawing from skiing, surfing and auto racing, Parrish uses personal experience as source material. See below, upper left image for his work.

Discover R. Nelson Parrish at https://www.rnelsonparrish.com

Photos by: Bryon Friedman