<b>NAMIYO AT HANAUMA BAY </b> / Masami Teraoka1985<b>SOLD</b></em>

Details

Masami Teraoka is a Japanese American artist residing in Hawaii that produces work that blends the style of 19th-century Japanese prints with contemporary scenes of modernity. The juxtaposition often reveals social or political commentary or polemic statements on contemporary life.

In this design, we have a female figure rendered in the style of Toyokuni III. The figure is instantly identifiable as an awabi diver and recalls Utamaro’s exotic and sexually charged depictions of these figures. Teraoka’s bijin-ga wears a 19th-century hair comb while situated in the ocean with snorkeling gear. The pensive woman holds a pair of goggles and a snorkeling tube while her gaze is caught off to the right at something not visible to the viewer. The torrent of ocean waves behind her adds to the drama of this spectacle.

This charming design is a bold collision of two cultures the artist inhabits. On one side of the sphere, it is a faithful reworking of Ukiyo-e, compete with title and signature cartouches and even a sensor seal. While on the other side, it is a document of contemporary tourist activities on ocean resorts. The design blends reality with fantasy, humor and commentary, history and the present. It is interesting to note that awabi divers were known to hold their breath for five to six minutes at a time while plunging into the depths of the ocean’s floor. Teraoka’s diver seems to have lost that ability and requires snorkeling gear that would only support a dive at a superficial depth.

Connoisseur's Note

This design is one of Teroka’s most sought-after larger-scale prints. The work is a high-quality color lithograph executed in 18 colors on Buff Arches Cover—deluxe thick laid paper. The work is hand-signed and numbered 145/150 by the artist on the reverse. It is interesting to compare this awabi diver design to Kiyoshi’s nude of a similar subject also offered in this exhibition.