Sosaku hanga
Encyclopedia
was an art movement
in early 20th-century Japan
, during the Taishō
and Shōwa
periods. It advocated the principles of "self-drawn" (自画, jiga), "self-carved" (自刻, jikoku) and "self-printed" (自刷, jizuri) art, stressing the artist, motivated by a desire for self-expression, as the sole creator. As opposed to the shin hanga
("new prints") movement that maintained the traditional ukiyo-e
collaborative system (the hanmoto system) where the artist, carver, printer, and publisher engaged in division of labor, creative print artists distinguished themselves as artists creating art for art’s sake.
The birth of the sōsaku hanga movement (創作版画運動, sōsaku hanga undō) was signaled by Kanae Yamamoto’s (1882–1946) small print called “Fisherman” in 1904. Departing from the ukiyo-e collaborative system, Kanae Yamamoto Kanae made the print solely on his own, all the way from drawing, carving and printing. Such principles of “self-drawn”, self-carved” and “self-printed” became the foundation of the creative print movement, which struggled for existence in prewar Japan along with other art movements, and gained its momentum and flourished in postwar Japan as the genuine heir of the ukiyo-e tradition.
The 1951 São Paulo Art Biennial
witnessed the success of the creative print movement. Both of the Japanese winners, Yamamoto and Kiyoshi Saitō (1907–1997) were printmakers, who outperformed Japanese paintings (nihonga
), Western-style paintings (yōga), sculptures and avant-garde. Other sōsaku hanga artists such as Kōshirō Onchi (1891–1955), Unichi Hiratsuka (1895–1997), Sadao Watanabe (1913–1996) and Maki Haku
(1924–2000) are also well-known in the West.
after decades of modernization
. In both artistic and literary circles, there emerged at the turn of the century expressions of the “self”. In 1910, Kōtarō Takamura
's (1883-1956) “A Green Sun” encourages artists’ individual expression: “I desire absolute freedom of art. Consequently I recognize the limitless authority of individuality of the artist… Even if two or three artists should paint a “green sun”, I would never criticize them for I myself may see a green sun”. In 1912, in “Bunten and the Creative Arts” (Bunten to Geijutsu), Natsume Sōseki
(1867–1916) states that “art begins with the expression of the self and ends with the expression of the self”. These two essays marked the beginning of the intellectual discussion of the “self”, which immediately found echo in the art scene. 1910 witnessed the first publication of a monthly magazine called White Birch (Shirakaba), the most important magazine shaping the thought of the Taishō period. Aspiring young artists organized its first exhibition in the same year. Shirakaba also sponsored exhibitions of Western art.
In its early formative years, the sōsaku hanga movement, like many other art movements such as the shin hanga movement, futurism
and proletarian art movement, struggled to survive, experiment and sought a voice in an art scene dominated by mainstream arts that were well-received by the Bunten. Hanga in general (including shin hanga) did not achieve the status of Western oil paintings (yōga) in Japan. Hanga was considered as a craft
that was inferior to paintings and sculptures. Ukiyo-e woodblock
prints had always been considered as mere reproductions for mass commercial consumption, as opposed to the European view of ukiyo-e as art, during the climax of Japonisme. It was impossible for sōsaku hanga artists to make a living by just doing creative prints. Many of the later renowned sōsaku hanga artists, such as Kōshirō Onchi (also known as the father of the creative print movement), were book illustrators and wood carvers. It was not until 1927 that hanga was accepted by the Teiten (the former Bunten). In 1935, extracurricular classes on hanga were finally permitted.
severe.
. The 1951 San Francisco Peace Treaty ended the American Occupation in Japan. During the occupation, American soldiers and their wives bought and collected Japanese prints as souvenirs. It can be said that Japanese prints became one of the components of postwar economic reconstruction. With the aim of promoting “democratic art”, American patronage shifted from shin hanga to sōsaku hanga. By 1950, abstraction
became the mode of the creative print movement in Japan. Japanese prints were perceived as genuine blending of East and West. Artists such as Kōshirō Onchi, who had shown passion for abstract
expression since his early years, turned completely to abstract art after the war (abstract art had been banned by the military government during wartime). The 1951 São Paulo Art Biennial
was Japan’s first postwar submission to an international exhibition. Notable artists such as Shikō Munakata
(1903–1975) and Naoko Matsubara (1937- ) worked in the folk art
tradition (mingei
), and held one-man shows in the United States
.
and produces everyday qualities in his prints in the form of photographic diaries. Artists such as Maki Haku
(1924–2000) and Shinoda Toko
(1913-) synthesize calligraphy
and abstract expression and produce strikingly beautiful and serene images. Sadao Watanabe worked in the mingei (folk art) tradition, synthesizing Buddhist
figure portrayal and Western Christianity
in his unique Biblical prints.
From 1960s onwards, the line between fine art
and commercial media
was blurred. Pop
and conceptual artists work with professional technicians, and possibilities for innovation are endless.
Art movement
An art movement is a tendency or style in art with a specific common philosophy or goal, followed by a group of artists during a restricted period of time, or, at least, with the heyday of the movement defined within a number of years...
in early 20th-century Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, during the Taishō
Taisho period
The , or Taishō era, is a period in the history of Japan dating from July 30, 1912 to December 25, 1926, coinciding with the reign of the Taishō Emperor. The health of the new emperor was weak, which prompted the shift in political power from the old oligarchic group of elder statesmen to the Diet...
and Shōwa
Showa period
The , or Shōwa era, is the period of Japanese history corresponding to the reign of the Shōwa Emperor, Hirohito, from December 25, 1926 through January 7, 1989.The Shōwa period was longer than the reign of any previous Japanese emperor...
periods. It advocated the principles of "self-drawn" (自画, jiga), "self-carved" (自刻, jikoku) and "self-printed" (自刷, jizuri) art, stressing the artist, motivated by a desire for self-expression, as the sole creator. As opposed to the shin hanga
Shin hanga
was an art movement in early 20th-century Japan, during the Taishō and Shōwa periods, that revitalized traditional ukiyo-e art rooted in the Edo and Meiji periods...
("new prints") movement that maintained the traditional ukiyo-e
Ukiyo-e
' is a genre of Japanese woodblock prints and paintings produced between the 17th and the 20th centuries, featuring motifs of landscapes, tales from history, the theatre, and pleasure quarters...
collaborative system (the hanmoto system) where the artist, carver, printer, and publisher engaged in division of labor, creative print artists distinguished themselves as artists creating art for art’s sake.
The birth of the sōsaku hanga movement (創作版画運動, sōsaku hanga undō) was signaled by Kanae Yamamoto’s (1882–1946) small print called “Fisherman” in 1904. Departing from the ukiyo-e collaborative system, Kanae Yamamoto Kanae made the print solely on his own, all the way from drawing, carving and printing. Such principles of “self-drawn”, self-carved” and “self-printed” became the foundation of the creative print movement, which struggled for existence in prewar Japan along with other art movements, and gained its momentum and flourished in postwar Japan as the genuine heir of the ukiyo-e tradition.
The 1951 São Paulo Art Biennial
São Paulo Art Biennial
The São Paulo Art Biennial was founded in 1951 and has been held every two years since. It is the second oldest art biennial in the world after the Venice Biennial , which serves as its role model....
witnessed the success of the creative print movement. Both of the Japanese winners, Yamamoto and Kiyoshi Saitō (1907–1997) were printmakers, who outperformed Japanese paintings (nihonga
Nihonga
or literally "Japanese-style paintings" is a term used to describe paintings that have been made in accordance with traditional Japanese artistic conventions, techniques and materials...
), Western-style paintings (yōga), sculptures and avant-garde. Other sōsaku hanga artists such as Kōshirō Onchi (1891–1955), Unichi Hiratsuka (1895–1997), Sadao Watanabe (1913–1996) and Maki Haku
Maki Haku
is the artistic name of Maejima Tadaaki, who was born in Ibaraki Prefecture. Maki Haku was a sōsaku hanga artist in 20th Century Japan. He had no formal art training, but was guided by the sōsaku hanga leading artist Onchi Kōshirō Maki Haku is represented at the Tokyo International Print Biennale...
(1924–2000) are also well-known in the West.
Origins and early years
The creative print movement was one of the many manifestations of the rise of the individualIndividual
An individual is a person or any specific object or thing in a collection. Individuality is the state or quality of being an individual; a person separate from other persons and possessing his or her own needs, goals, and desires. Being self expressive...
after decades of modernization
Modernization
In the social sciences, modernization or modernisation refers to a model of an evolutionary transition from a 'pre-modern' or 'traditional' to a 'modern' society. The teleology of modernization is described in social evolutionism theories, existing as a template that has been generally followed by...
. In both artistic and literary circles, there emerged at the turn of the century expressions of the “self”. In 1910, Kōtarō Takamura
Kotaro Takamura
was a Japanese poet and sculptor.-Biography:Kōtarō was the son of Takamura Kōun, a renowned Japanese sculptor.He graduated from the Tokyo School of Fine Arts in 1902, where he studied sculpture...
's (1883-1956) “A Green Sun” encourages artists’ individual expression: “I desire absolute freedom of art. Consequently I recognize the limitless authority of individuality of the artist… Even if two or three artists should paint a “green sun”, I would never criticize them for I myself may see a green sun”. In 1912, in “Bunten and the Creative Arts” (Bunten to Geijutsu), Natsume Sōseki
Natsume Soseki
, born ', is widely considered to be the foremost Japanese novelist of the Meiji period . He is best known for his novels Kokoro, Botchan, I Am a Cat and his unfinished work Light and Darkness. He was also a scholar of British literature and composer of haiku, Chinese-style poetry, and fairy tales...
(1867–1916) states that “art begins with the expression of the self and ends with the expression of the self”. These two essays marked the beginning of the intellectual discussion of the “self”, which immediately found echo in the art scene. 1910 witnessed the first publication of a monthly magazine called White Birch (Shirakaba), the most important magazine shaping the thought of the Taishō period. Aspiring young artists organized its first exhibition in the same year. Shirakaba also sponsored exhibitions of Western art.
In its early formative years, the sōsaku hanga movement, like many other art movements such as the shin hanga movement, futurism
Futurism (art)
Futurism was an artistic and social movement that originated in Italy in the early 20th century. It emphasized and glorified themes associated with contemporary concepts of the future, including speed, technology, youth and violence, and objects such as the car, the airplane and the industrial city...
and proletarian art movement, struggled to survive, experiment and sought a voice in an art scene dominated by mainstream arts that were well-received by the Bunten. Hanga in general (including shin hanga) did not achieve the status of Western oil paintings (yōga) in Japan. Hanga was considered as a craft
Craft
A craft is a branch of a profession that requires some particular kind of skilled work. In historical sense, particularly as pertinent to the Medieval history and earlier, the term is usually applied towards people occupied in small-scale production of goods.-Development from the past until...
that was inferior to paintings and sculptures. Ukiyo-e woodblock
Woodblock printing in Japan
Woodblock printing in Japan is a technique best known for its use in the ukiyo-e artistic genre; however, it was also used very widely for printing books in the same period. Woodblock printing had been used in China for centuries to print books, long before the advent of movable type, but was only...
prints had always been considered as mere reproductions for mass commercial consumption, as opposed to the European view of ukiyo-e as art, during the climax of Japonisme. It was impossible for sōsaku hanga artists to make a living by just doing creative prints. Many of the later renowned sōsaku hanga artists, such as Kōshirō Onchi (also known as the father of the creative print movement), were book illustrators and wood carvers. It was not until 1927 that hanga was accepted by the Teiten (the former Bunten). In 1935, extracurricular classes on hanga were finally permitted.
Wartime
The wartime years from 1939 to 1945 was a metamorphosis for the creative print movement. The First Thursday Society, which was crucial to the postwar revival of Japanese prints, was formed in 1939 through the groups of people who gathered in the house of Kōshirō Onchi in Tokyo. The group met once a month to discuss subjects of woodblock prints. First initial members included Gen Yamaguchi (1896–1976) and Junichirō Sekino (1914–1988). American connoisseurs Ernst Hacker, William Hartnett and Oliver Statler also attended. They revived Western interest in Japanese prints in the form of creative print movement. The First Thursday Collection (Ichimoku-shū), a collection of prints by members to circulate to each other, was produced in 1944. Such a group and publication provided comradeship and a venue for artistic exchange and nourishment during the difficult war years when resource was scarce and censorshipCensorship
thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...
severe.
Postwar creative print movement
The rebirth of the Japanese print coincided with the rebirth of Japan after World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. The 1951 San Francisco Peace Treaty ended the American Occupation in Japan. During the occupation, American soldiers and their wives bought and collected Japanese prints as souvenirs. It can be said that Japanese prints became one of the components of postwar economic reconstruction. With the aim of promoting “democratic art”, American patronage shifted from shin hanga to sōsaku hanga. By 1950, abstraction
Abstraction
Abstraction is a process by which higher concepts are derived from the usage and classification of literal concepts, first principles, or other methods....
became the mode of the creative print movement in Japan. Japanese prints were perceived as genuine blending of East and West. Artists such as Kōshirō Onchi, who had shown passion for abstract
Abstract art
Abstract art uses a visual language of form, color and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world. Western art had been, from the Renaissance up to the middle of the 19th century, underpinned by the logic of perspective and an...
expression since his early years, turned completely to abstract art after the war (abstract art had been banned by the military government during wartime). The 1951 São Paulo Art Biennial
São Paulo Art Biennial
The São Paulo Art Biennial was founded in 1951 and has been held every two years since. It is the second oldest art biennial in the world after the Venice Biennial , which serves as its role model....
was Japan’s first postwar submission to an international exhibition. Notable artists such as Shikō Munakata
Shiko Munakata
, was a woodblock printmaker active in Shōwa period Japan. He is associated with the sosaku hanga movement and the mingei movement. Munakata was awarded the "Prize of Excellence" at the Second International Print Exhibition in Lugano, Switzerland in 1952...
(1903–1975) and Naoko Matsubara (1937- ) worked in the folk art
Folk art
Folk art encompasses art produced from an indigenous culture or by peasants or other laboring tradespeople. In contrast to fine art, folk art is primarily utilitarian and decorative rather than purely aesthetic....
tradition (mingei
Mingei
', the Japanese folk art movement, was developed in the late 1920s and 1930s in Japan. Its founding father was Yanagi Sōetsu .-Origins:In 1916, Yanagi made his first trip to Korea out of a curiosity for Korean crafts...
), and held one-man shows in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Contemporary Japanese prints
Contemporary Japanese prints have a rich diversity in subject matter and style. Noda Tetsuya (1940- ) employs photographyPhotography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
and produces everyday qualities in his prints in the form of photographic diaries. Artists such as Maki Haku
Maki Haku
is the artistic name of Maejima Tadaaki, who was born in Ibaraki Prefecture. Maki Haku was a sōsaku hanga artist in 20th Century Japan. He had no formal art training, but was guided by the sōsaku hanga leading artist Onchi Kōshirō Maki Haku is represented at the Tokyo International Print Biennale...
(1924–2000) and Shinoda Toko
Shinoda Toko
is a Japanese artist working with sumi [ink] paintings and prints. Her art merges traditional calligraphy with modern abstract expression. A 1983 interview in Time magazine noted that “her trail-blazing accomplishments are analogous to Picasso’s”...
(1913-) synthesize calligraphy
Calligraphy
Calligraphy is a type of visual art. It is often called the art of fancy lettering . A contemporary definition of calligraphic practice is "the art of giving form to signs in an expressive, harmonious and skillful manner"...
and abstract expression and produce strikingly beautiful and serene images. Sadao Watanabe worked in the mingei (folk art) tradition, synthesizing Buddhist
Buddhist art
Buddhist art originated on the Indian subcontinent following the historical life of Siddhartha Gautama, 6th to 5th century BC, and thereafter evolved by contact with other cultures as it spread throughout Asia and the world....
figure portrayal and Western Christianity
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
in his unique Biblical prints.
From 1960s onwards, the line between fine art
Fine art
Fine art or the fine arts encompass art forms developed primarily for aesthetics and/or concept rather than practical application. Art is often a synonym for fine art, as employed in the term "art gallery"....
and commercial media
Mass media
Mass media refers collectively to all media technologies which are intended to reach a large audience via mass communication. Broadcast media transmit their information electronically and comprise of television, film and radio, movies, CDs, DVDs and some other gadgets like cameras or video consoles...
was blurred. Pop
Pop art
Pop art is an art movement that emerged in the mid 1950s in Britain and in the late 1950s in the United States. Pop art challenged tradition by asserting that an artist's use of the mass-produced visual commodities of popular culture is contiguous with the perspective of fine art...
and conceptual artists work with professional technicians, and possibilities for innovation are endless.
Notable sōsaku hanga artists
- Kitaoka Fumio
- Hajime Namiki
- Yamaguchi Gen
- Maki HakuMaki Hakuis the artistic name of Maejima Tadaaki, who was born in Ibaraki Prefecture. Maki Haku was a sōsaku hanga artist in 20th Century Japan. He had no formal art training, but was guided by the sōsaku hanga leading artist Onchi Kōshirō Maki Haku is represented at the Tokyo International Print Biennale...
- Tajima Hiroyuki
- Yoshida HodakaYoshida Hodakawas a Japanese modernist artist who worked first in oils, and then from 1950 in the woodblock print medium. From the beginning of his career, he broadened the range of styles and techniques used by Yoshida family artists.- Family:...
- Sekino Junichirō
- Yamamoto Kanae
- Saitō KiyoshiSaito Kiyoshi, was a sōsaku hanga artist in 20th Century Japan. In 1938, he issued his first prints in his now famous "Winter in Aizu" series. Saito was one of the first Japanese printmaking artists to have won at the São Paulo Biennale in 1951....
- Onchi KōshirōOnchi Koshiro, born in Tokyo, was a Japanese print-maker. He was the father of the sōsaku hanga movement in twentieth century Japan, and a photographer.-Biography:...
- Masao MaedaMasao Maedawas a woodblock print artist, born in Hakodate located on the island of Hokkaidō, Japan. The man who guided Masao Maeda's career was Hiratsuka Unichi. He first met him in 1923, and he later studied with him....
- Toshirō Maeda
- Matsubara NaokoMatsubara Naokois a Japanese artist. Matsubara graduated from the Kyoto University of Applied Arts in 1960. She then pursued an MFA in the School of Fine Arts at the Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh on a Fulbright Travel Grant, and since then has traveled extensively and taught at the Pratt Institute in...
- Watanabe SadaoWatanabe Sadao, born and grew up in Tokyo, was a Japanese printmaker in the 20th Century. Watanabe was famous for his biblical prints rendered in the mingei tradition of Japan. As a student of the master textile dye artist Serizawa Keisuke , Watanabe was associated with the mingei movement.-Early...
- Kihei Sasajima
- Maekawa Sempan
- Munakata Shikō
- Itow TakumiItow Takumiis a prominent Japanese printmaker and president of the Japan Print Society. His artwork has been featured on Japan Post postage stamps as well as featured in exhibitions at the Library of Congress and the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts...
- Shinagawa Takumi
- Noda Tetsuya
- Shinoda TokoShinoda Tokois a Japanese artist working with sumi [ink] paintings and prints. Her art merges traditional calligraphy with modern abstract expression. A 1983 interview in Time magazine noted that “her trail-blazing accomplishments are analogous to Picasso’s”...
- Tomikichirō Tokuriki
- Yoshida TōshiYoshida Toshi, was a Japanese printmaking artist associated with the sōsaku hanga movement, and son of shin hanga artist Hiroshi Yoshida. Born in 1911, during the last year of the Meiji period, Yoshida witnessed the high points of social liberalism during the Taishō period, rising militarism, and the...
- Azechi Umetarō
- Hiratsuka UnichiHiratsuka Unichi, born in Matsue, Shimane, was a Japanese print-maker. He was one of the prominent leaders of the sōsaku hanga movement in 20th Century Japan. Hiratsuka was the best–trained woodcarver in the sōsaku hanga movement. From 1928 onwards, he taught the renowned sōsaku hanga artist Shikō Munakata wood...
- Kobashi Yasuhide
- Mori Yoshitoshi
Further reading
- Ajioka, Chiaki, Kuwahara, Noriko and Nishiyama, Junko. Hanga: Japanese creative prints. Sydney: Art Gallery of New South Wales, c2000. ISBN 0-7347-6313-1
- Blakemore, Frances. Who’s Who in Modern Japanese Prints. New York: Weatherhill, 1975.
- Fujikake, Shizuya. Japanese Woodblock Prints. Tokyo: Japan Travel Bureau, 1957.
- Kawakita, Michiaki. Contemporary Japanese Prints. Tokyo and Palo Alto: Kodansha, 1967.
- Keyes, Roger. Break with the Past: The Japanese Creative Print Movement, 1910-1960. Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, 1988.
- Michener, James. The Modern Japanese Print: An Appreciation. Rutland & Tokyo: Tuttle, 1968.
- Petit G. and Arboleda A. Evolving Techniques in Japanese Woodblock Prints. Tokyo: Kodansha, 1977.
- Statler, Oliver. Modern Japanese Prints: An Art Reborn. Rutland & Tokyo: Tuttle, 1956.
- Smith, Lawrence. Japanese Prints During the Allied Occupation 1945-1952: Onchi Koshiro, Ernst Hacker and the First Thursday Society. Art Media Resources, 2002. ISBN 0-7567-8527-8
- Volk, Alicia. Made in Japan: The Postwar Creative Print Movement. Milwaukee Art Museum and University of Washington Press, 2005. ISBN 0-295-98502-X
External links
- Sōsaku hanga — Viewing Japanese Prints, a website by John Fiorillo
- Sōsaku hanga — artelino - Art Auctions
- Sosaku Hanga artists
- What is a Print? An excellent flash-demonstration of the printmaking process.
- Sōsaku hanga website This website gives an overview of the sōsaku hanga movement by means of articles and biographies. Sōsaku hanga prints are also offered for sale.