Tag: woodblock prints
-
A Brief History of the Onna Musha, the Female Samurai
What comes to mind when you hear the word samurai? Men wielding katanas? Ironclad Japanese warriors about to strike a blow? Or perhaps a robed samurai on the verge of self-sacrifice. What about a kimono-wrapped lady on the verge of kicking ass? While most women in feudal Japan were expected to adhere to traditional roles,…
-
Ohno Bafuku’s Creative Nature Prints
Ohno Bafuku (1888-1972) was a Japanese shin-hanga painter best known for his inspired naturely art works or sosaku-hanga (“creative prints”). Though nature is a frequent theme in Japanese art, Bafuku expresses an intensity and perspective that feels alternative to his era. One need only see Mebaru (20th. CE; above) to appreciate its conceptual beauty. The…
-
Itō Shinsui: Master of Bijin-ga
Itō Shinsui is an expert in beautiful women — or at least in painting them. An icon of the Shin-hanga (modern ukiyo-e) movement, Shinsui specifically excelled at bijin-ga: portraits of beautiful women. What makes Shinsui’s prints so special? Women are certainly not a new topic in the art world, and definitely not in ukiyo-e. From…