Germination (2) by Hideo Hagiwara
This is a woodblock print titled Germination (2) by noted Japanese Sōsaku-hanga artist Hideo Hagiwara. It is one of five prints from the series ‘Germination’. This is from early in Hagiwara's career--1959, where he is exploring novel techniques in woodblock printing. It is an abstract composed of a seed like object on a blue-green background framed by blocks of brown and black. In studying traditional ukiyo-e prints, Hagiwara noticed color bleeding through to the back of the paper. In a stunning innovation, representing a major departure from traditional Japanese printmaking, he created the image by printing on the front then inking the back of the paper (ura-zuri) and forcing the ink through the paper to create the final image. No other artist had ever attempted this technique. I was so novel that a print from his series ‘Memory of Snow’ was included in the arts section of Time magazine on 7 September 1959 vaulting him to international recognition. An incredible image that really shows the innovation and creativity of Hagiwara early in his career. It is signed and dated in pencil lower left hideo hagiwara 5 and titled in Japanese and English 'Germination (2)' lower center. The edition 17/30 is lower right. This is a very small edition for the artist. The image is 15 x 22 3/4 inches. It is not framed. The sheet is untrimmed and is 16 3/4 x 23 1/2 inches. There are additional notes in the margin and on the reverse including a gallery label. The print itself is in excellent condition without fading, staining, foxing, tears, or paper loss. There are some creases, but these seem to be a product of this printing technique, as I've seen them in other examples. It's a striking example of Hagiwara's early innovative work.
Hideo Hagiwara (1913-2007) Hideo Hagiwara was a renowned Japanese printmaker whose career encompassed most of the 20th century. He was a prominent leader of the Sōsaku-hanga ("creative prints") movement of woodblock printing which, in contrast to prior printmaking movements in Japan, held that the artist should be the sole creator motivated by a desire for self-expression, and advocated principles of art that is "self-drawn" (自画 jiga), "self-carved" (自刻 jikoku) and "self-printed" (自摺 jizuri). Hagiwara studied at the Tokyo Academy of Fine Arts. After the war his career was characterized by innovations in printmaking that heavily influenced contemporary and subsequent generations of Japanese printmakers. His reputation expanded beyond Japan helped by a feature article in Time Magazine in 1959. In addition to his creative work, he held the prestigious position of Chief Director of the Japan Print Association from 1979-2000. He received many awards most notably a Purple Ribbon Medal from the Japanese Government in 1983 and a Gold Medal from the Nobel Prize Committee in 1989. One of his most famous works is a series of 50 prints of Mount Fuji. Mount Fuji has been a favored subject of Japanese artists for hundreds of years, so this series reflects not only Hagiwara’s innovative printmaking, but pays homage to the long tradition of printmaking in Japan. His work is held in important collections all over the world including the Museum of Modern Art, New York, The Art Institute of Chicago, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Cincinnati Art Museum, the Victoria and Albert Museum, the New South Wales Art Gallery, Sidney, and the Vienna National Museum of Art.
Price: $850
Size: 16.75 x 23.5 inches
Plate Size: 15 x 22.75 inches
Condition: Excellent
Medium: Wood Block Print
Subject: Abstract
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