Hasui was a great master of the twentieth-century shin-hanga (new prints) school. His talent for capturing a mood, illustrating a scene, and drawing the viewer into the image makes for some of the most appealing Japanese woodblocks ever created.
Early life
Born in Tokyo in 1883, Hasui was always interested in art. He studied ukiyo-e and Japanese-style painting at the studio of Kiyokata Kaburagi. He also studied Western-style painting for a couple years. He had taken over his family’s wholesale rope business, but it failed when he was in his twenties, and he turned to art as a career.
Woodblock printing
Hasui spent most of his adult life as a woodblock printmaker. Unlike earlier ukiyo-e artists whose landscapes typically featured famous sites, Hasui was one of the first artists to record the unknown rural places and urban corners that he found so captivating. He traveled often and recorded the scenic wonders of Japan with drawings and watercolor paintings, which became the basis for many of his prints.
In the face of rapid modernization during the twentieth century, Hasui's prints evoke a sense of nostalgia for old Japan and a respect for traditional culture. His romanticized views emphasize the beauty of the natural landscape; figures are absent or often small and insignificant in comparison. Hasui was known for his spectacular snow, rain and night scenes. These wonderful atmospheric landscapes are among his best work.
A prolific artist, Hasui created about six hundred woodblock print designs during his long career, the majority of them for publisher Watanabe Shozaburo. In 1953 the Japanese government bestowed its greatest artistic honor on him by commissioning a print, Snow at Zozoji Temple, and designating it as an Intangible Cultural Treasure.
Comments - Beautiful autumn scene of the road winding around Saruiwa or Saru Crag in Shiobara. A pair of figures pauses to enjoy the view, dwarfed by the rocky peak towering above them. Trees covered with yellow and orange foliage create a striking setting, with a mountain in the distance rising above the mist. Lovely color and detail in this handsome design.
Signed - Hasui, with red artist's seal "Kawase"
Publisher - Watanabe, circular seal within image, Hesei seal in margin, later edition original from original blocks
Artist - Hasui (1883 - 1957)
Image Size - 14 1/4" x 9 1/2" + margins as shown
Condition - Excellent overall with no issues to report.
