Modern Landscapes of Japan

The Japanese Gallery is pleased to announce our new exhibition of Shin-hanga Landscapes: Kawase Hasui, Yoshida Hiroshi and Yoshida Toshi.

Yoshida Hiroshi (1876-1950) and Kawase Hasui (1883-1957) were both leading artists in the ‘Shin-hanga’ movement, which was an evolution of Ukiyoe – the traditional art form of Japanese woodblock printing. This new movement created during the early 1900s during the westernisation of Japan, was sparked by the father of Shin-hanga movement, Watanabe Shosaburo (1885-1962), who published the first art work of this style with artist Hashiguchi Goyo (1880-1921) in 1916. His concept was to create a new style of woodblock prints, which was artistic rather than commercially mass produced, whilst maintaining a strong collaboration between artist, woodblock carver, printer and publisher during the production process. Many of the artists during this period were inspired by art from overseas; especially Europe. These modern prints were much more realistic and western in style than the traditional style of Ukiyoe prints. Landscape was the most popular subject in Shin-hanga and the artists depicted photographic scenes of actual places of Japan. Shin-hanga landscapes were particularly popular in both America and Europe, a trend which continues today, and we are proud to highlight some these wonderful examples through this exhibition.

Featured artists:

Kawase, Hasui (1883-1957)

Initially trained in Japanese traditional painting but spent almost 10 years trying to develop his printing skills and to define his artistic style. His work features nostalgic and sleepy rural locations with warm colours of nature and wooden architecture. He is recognised as one of the most popular and sought after artist of 20thC woodblock prints.

Yoshida, Hiroshi (1876-1950)

Hiroshi was an established oil painter who had won numerous awards on his paintings before he published his own prints in 1925. Hiroshi’s works on prints reflected his earlier work on oil paintings, adapting Western methods and styles such as using metal stencils. Alongside Hasui, he is one of the highly revered artists of the shin hanga movmenet.

Yoshida, Toshi (1911-1995)

Toshi, a son of Yoshida Hiroshi, was trained in printmaking by his father. Toshi used Western techniques such as lithography and produced prints by himself. Hiroshi and Toshi travelled around the world together for their landscape art works, but Toshi also branched out into other subjects such as animal prints to distinguish his work from his father’s.

The highlighted artists and many other pieces are showcased as a unique opportunity for those wishing to discover this delightful genre of art that is increasingly collected and sought after by collectors and museums worldwide.