Yoshida, Hiroshi (1876 - 1950), "First Light of The Sun (Oversized Format)"

Notes: Titled and signed in pencil by the artist. Yoshida notes in his 1939 book, Japanese Wood-block Printing, that 8 blocks and 54 separate impressions were used to produce this print.

'With Hokusai's famous Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji in mind, Hiroshi made his own series titled, "Ten Views of Fuji" to show the majestic beauty of Japan's highest mountain. In the series, the large-sized 'First Light of The Sun' and mid-sized 'Lake Kawaguchi', are the masterpieces of the group and noted for their great technical precision.' - A Japanese Legacy, The Minneapolis Institute of Arts; pg. 50.

Hiroshi established a third school of modern prints in Japan, combining the artist-carver-publisher system of Ukiyo-e with the sosaku-hanga artist's total control of the final image. This was one reason why he separated himself from the Watanabe Print Shop, because he realized the supreme importance of the painter in the process. In the Watanabe Print Shop, painters, carvers, and the printers had equal input, with the publisher as the ultimate director. But Hiroshi believed that the painter, as the initial creator of the design, should have supreme authority, and that he, as the painter, should supervise the carvers and printers and in so doing also assume the role of director. This is why he always printed the notation "self-print" on his works, as a way to distinguish his prints from those of other shin-hanga artists. By taking Western painting into the realm of traditional Japanese woodblock printmaking, Hiroshi opened up a new frontier in Japan that was unprecedented and thoroughly original in the field of Japanese art.