1893-1945
One Hundred Pictures of Great Tokyo in the Showa Era: Nanushi Waterfall at Oji (no. 95)
(Showa dai Tokyo hyakuzue: Oji nanushi-no-taki)
self-carved, self-printed; signed and dated within the composition, Izumi, with artist's red archaic seal Koizumi Kishio ga to, 1937, print title on the upper left margin in black, Oji nanushi-no-taki, the series title on the right margin, Showa dai Tokyo hyakuzue, dated and numbered, hanga kanseiban, dai juninen hachigatsu saku, kyujugo kei (complete print series, 12th year [1937], 8th month, no. 95), and signed in pencil, Koizumi Kishio, 1937
dai oban tate-e 15 3/8 by 11 7/8 in., 39.1 by 30.1 cm
In 1928 Kishio Koizumi released the first print of this ambitious series of 100 designs. Entirely self-carved and self-printed, the series would take nine years to complete during a period of rapid expanding and rebuilding of Tokyo and tumultuous political and social change in Japan. Koizumi's views of Tokyo reflected an interest in the modernization of the city while at the same time a sense of nostalgic pride in traditional Japan.
In Koizumi's annotated index he comments: There has long been a gathering at this waterfall where people proudly show off their tattoos.
References:
James T. Ulak, Tokyo Modern-II, Koizumi Kishio's 1940 Annotations on "100 Views of Great Tokyo in the Showa Era," Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Visualizing Cultures (visualizingcultures.mit.edu), 2009 (Koizumi translation)
Chris Uhlenbeck, Amy Reigle Newland and Maureen de Vries, Waves of Renewal: Modern Japanese Prints, 1900-1960, Selection from the Nihon no hanga Collection, 2016, p. 237, no. 186
The Wolfsonian-Florida International University, Miami Beach, Florida, Mitchell Wolfson, Jr. Collection, no. TD1993.69.1.5
(inv. no. 10-5696)
offered as a set
price: (reserved)