Artist: Pieter Irwin Brown
Medium: Original Japanese Woodblock Print
Series Title: Japan
Edition: First and only
Date: c.1936
Publisher: S. Watanabe Color Print Co.
Reference No.: Uncatalogued
Size: 11 -3/4 x 15 -1/4 "
Condition: Very fine
Notes:
Little is known about the complete oeuvre of works by the artist, so there continues to be undocumented designs coming to market. Published by the S. Watanabe Color Print Co. and includes the artist's pencil signature in the top right corner.
Pieter Irwin Brown was a European artist who contributed to the shin hanga movement during the 1930's. Born in Rotterdam of Dutch and Irish parentage, Pieter studied art from childhood, first with a private tutor and later at the local art school.
In the early 1930's, Brown made a short visit to Egypt and then travelled to Indonesia, staying on the island of Java for two years. He supported himself by working as a freelance artist and illustrator. By 1934, he was on the move again - this time to Japan. When he arrived, Brown was immediately struck by the beauty and history inherent in the Japanese landscape. From his home in Kyoto, Brown made trips to China, Manchuria, and Korea. One of the places that especially interested him was Jehol, located in the northwest Chinese province of Hebei.
Around 1935, Brown met the woodblock publisher Watanabe Shozaburo and sold him several drawings of Japanese scenes. Watanabe used these as the basis for woodblock prints which he showed to Brown several months later. Over the next couple years, Brown also designed prints for Adachi Toyohisa, the proprietor of the Adachi Institute of Prints. Adachi primarily made ukiyo-e reproduction prints, and Brown was the only Westerner to collaborate with him on original prints. Adachi published several prints based on Brown's Chinese landscapes, including Jehol and Peking. In addition, Brown designed two series of greeting cards and two prints of the U.S. consulate in Yokohama, commissioned by Richard Boyce.