Kyōto, Chion-in, Kawase Hasui

Exhibition Label: "Tradition and Modernity: Japanese Art of the Early Twentieth Century," Jan-2005, Hillary Pedersen Originally a painter, Hasui began producing woodblock prints in 1919. He traveled extensively, visiting many famous scenic spots in Japan. His images make him one of the most widely known and beloved shin hanga (“new print”) artists throughout the world and earned him recognition as a Living National Treasure by the Japanese government in 1956. The famous Chion-in temple is seen here from the base of the large gate, a view which allows the observer to see the details of the architecture as well as a woman and girl as they pass through to the park-like setting beyond. With this unique point of view, Hasui demonstrated his skill at illustrating perspective and in detailing the rocky texture of the stones and the seals stuck upon the wooden pillars and rafters of the gate. Archive Label date unknown: Hasui studied Japanese and Western-style painting before focusing on printmaking by 1919. He worked with Watanabe Shōzaburō (1885-1962), the publisher responsible for a revival of traditional methods and subjects of woodblock printing. Hasui added a contemporary finesse to the older style of landscape that appealed to both Japanese and European print collectors. The artist traveled extensively, visitign virtually all Japan's most famous sites and capturing them in print. Popular throughout the world, he was named a Living National Treasure in 1956. The scene depicted here is of the Chion-in, a temple in Kyoto. The open front gate allows the afternoon sunlight to shine through, evoking a reflective, timeless mood. Archive Label date unknown: Prior to becoming a printmaker, Hasui studied both Japanese and Western style painting. From around 1918 he began to work with the visionary and entrepreneurial publisher of prints, Watanabe Shōzaburō (1885-1962). Watanabe threw himself into the revival of the ukiyo-e print tradition of the Edo Period (1600-1868), in which prints were the product of a collaboration involving the publisher, artist, carver, and printer. Watanabe recognized a market for Japanese prints in the United States and Europe, and he sought out artists who could make prints of traditional subject matter but with a contemporary flavor. Thus Watanabe played a pivotal role in what is now called the Shinhanga (new print) movement.