<b>GINZA BY NIGHT</b> / Kazuma Oda1929<b>SOLD</b></em>

Details

Though Oda Kazuma is known as Japan’s most celebrated lithographer, this multifaceted artist was also well versed in the art of woodblock prints and produced a handful of stunning designs throughout his career. This striking modern landscape features the bustling activity of the Ginza district as night descends. The artist was fascinated by Japan’s radical changing landscape, often depicting scenes of newly erected bridges, buildings, and the bustling nightlife of the city. With automobiles, trams, and the exciting network of lights the Ginza is so famously associated with, this scene contains so much of what fascinated Oda and is presented to the viewer with an enthusiasm and exuberance for the modern world.

Connoisseur's Note

This woodblock print was executed in the Sosaku Hanga style of printmaking, where the artist conceives the design, carves the blocks and prints the work entirely himself. Oda was an early proponent of Sosaku Hanga style prints but is also known to have straddled both Shin Hanga and Sosaku Hanga traditions, also produce designs that were created by a network of skilled artisans. It is interesting to note the comparison of Oda’s other Ginza design executed as a lithograph, also featured in this exhibition.

As a Sosaku Hanga work, this design lacks a key-block outline and is executed with expressively carved printing blocks. The colors are printed onto each other rather loosely in a spirited manner similar to European expressionist printmaking. This expressive carving and printing serve to heighten the drama of the scene and advance the cause of the Sosaku Hanga movement. Further, this design also provides an excellent account of Japan's rise toward modernism, and as such, the early representation of automobiles and public transportation make it that much more appealing to collectors.