Japan Art and Kawase Hasui
Lee Jay Walker
Modern Tokyo Times
Kawase Hasui (1883-1957) created stunning art throughout his life. He belongs to the printing world of Shin-Hanga (New Prints) that lit up the printing world in the early twentieth century.
Above, Hasui focuses on the iconic Mount Fuji. The result is a stunning landscape of this famous mountain.
The Sompo Museum says, “Hasui was inspired by breezes and spent his days traveling with the sun, clouds, and rain, painting the scenery of all four seasons of Japan. This was also a journey to seek the scenery of old times. One of the key supporters of woodblock production was Shozaburo Watanabe, a woodblock print publisher and leader of the shin-hanga (new prints) movement. Their strong desire to create something special lead them to strive for woodblock prints that could also be appreciated overseas.”
Hasui is known in his native country for the gentle nature of his art. Hence, his prints are most appealing.
The British Museum says, “Because of delicate health, which affected him all his life, he spent much time as a boy in the hot-spring resort of Shiobara where his aunt lived; his love of the Japanese landscape, and especially of scenes of snow, rain and mist, was born in those years... After the war, he was used by the Government to represent a gentler side of Japan in tourist publications, and in 1953 his ‘Zojoji in Snow’ was commissioned as an ‘Intangible Cultural Asset’ to represent the co-operative skills of the traditional print method.”
Hasui is known for utilizing the four seasons. Also, Hasui produced many prints that focus on declining light concerning the late evening period to the potency of moonlight.
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