Artist: Kawase Hasui
Medium: Original Japanese Woodblock Print
Series Title: Twenty Views of Tokyo
Edition: First
Date: 1926
Publisher: S. Watanabe Color Print Co.
Reference No.: Hotei #149
Size: 15 -1/2 x 10 -1/4 "
Condition: Very fine
Notes:
Narazaki notes, 'The silhouetted form of a rickshaw is reminiscent of the work of Kobayashi Kiyochika (1847-1915). Elements such as the handling of the lights, the bridge damp from the downpour and the swaying reflections of the lights are also in the style of Kiyochika. Only the mood of the torrential rain, created by the use of the baren pad incorporates Hasui's style'. The rendition of the heavy rain is unique to each print since it is created by hand using the baren printing tool.
A steel bridge replaced the old wooden bridge in 1912. Hasui's print of this modern structure reflects a time of rapid change in Japan's modernising urban landscape, and as a subject contrasts the artist's generally nostalgic and traditional portrayals of Japan in which time seems to stand still.