<b>SNOW AT ZOJOJI TEMPLE</b> / Kawase Hasui1922<B>SOLD</B></em>
ARTIST: Kawase Hasui (1883-1957)
TITLE: Snow at Zojoji Temple
MEDIUM: Woodblock
DATE: 1922
DIMENSIONS: 15 5/8 x 10
PUBLISHER: S. Watanabe Print Co.
CONDITION: Pristine, with sharp and vivid colors—no condition problems to note
LITERATURE: Kendall H. Brown, Kawase Hasui: The Complete Woodblock Prints, 2003, pl. 81
NOTE: Rare pre-earthquake design
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Details
Perhaps above all other designs, Hasui is most remembered for his iconic snow scenes featuring this temple. Hasui returned to this motif multiple times in his career, and this design was the one that started it all. It’s interesting to note how strikingly modern this design is in comparison to his oeuvre and in particular, to his other Zojoji Temple designs. This work features a man dressed in Western clothing and an umbrella fighting the billowing snow as he walks through the temple complex. The perspective Hasui utilizes is also quite realistic, further setting it apart from his other work. It is interesting to note that his next Zojoji temple design was executed only a few years later, in 1925 and features a flatter perspective with a woman in traditional dress clad in a kimono, wooden shoes, and a paper umbrella—hardly what one would expect to see at that time given those weather conditions. Ironically, one must examine Hasui’s early work to find more pronounced traces of modernity.
Connoisseur's Note
This print is a true time capsule. It was never framed or displayed and was stored in archival boxes. Prints in this pristine condition, particularly those created before the earthquake, seldom come up for sale. This is an exceedingly rare opportunity to own a stunning Hasui design with fresh and vivid colors in its original state.
