A large painting on a wall, screen, or sliding door *shōhekiga 障壁画 where strong, bright, mineral pigments such as ultramarine *gunjō 群青, malachite *rokushō 緑青, and red ocher *taisha 代赭 were applied over gold backgrounds *kinpekiga 金碧画. Gold foil kinpaku 金箔 and gold paint kindei 金泥 were applied to the large areas to represent both ground and sky (clouds), and became suggestive of an abstract space in which the motifs were then arranged. The style is known as kinpeki 金碧. The Momoyama period is considered the golden age of kinpeki shōhekiga. Recent research suggests that painting with gold backgrounds existed before then, possibly as early as the 10th century, in the *yamato-e やまと絵 tradition. The style became popular with the rise of castle building which required the decoration of large and poorly lit interiors. Gold surfaces reflected the available light and helped to illuminate the rooms. The visual effects of gold backgrounds which conveyed the status and power of the lord of the castle were enhanced by the strong colors *dami-e 濃絵 and large motifs of the compositions, most popularly bird-and-flower themes, giant trees, and powerful animals such as tigers and dragons. Genre and festival scenes were also popular among wealthy merchants. Both the subjects and style were though to represent the power and wealth of the military leaders who built the castles. The Kano school *Kano-ha 狩野派 dominated kinpeki shōhekiga. Kano Eitoku 狩野永徳 (1543-90) was commissioned to decorate the walls of the castles at Azuchijō 安土城, Osakajō 大坂城, and Fushimijō 伏見城, and Kano Tan'yū 狩野探幽 (1602-74) worked on the decoration of Nijōjō 二条城 and Nagoyajō 名古屋城. The huge wall and sliding-door paintings of Hawks in Pine Trees *Matsutaka-zu 松鷹図 (1626) in Nijōjō is one famous extant example. Sliding doors and wall panels (screens) in the kinpeki style by the Kano artists also decorate various temples including Nanzenji 南禅寺 (Eitoku and Tan'yū), Myōshinji 妙心寺 (Kano Sanraku 狩野山楽; 1559-1635, and Kano Sansetsu 狩野山雪; 1589-1651), and Nishihonganji 西本願寺 (Watanabe Ryōkei 渡辺了慶; ?-1645). Other *kanga 漢画 artists, such as those in the *Hasegawa-ha 長谷川派 and *Kaihō-ha 海北派, produced vigorous and striking compositions in kinpeki shōhekiga.