Sakawa Bridge in Evening- V2
by Shotei Takahashi (1871-1945) Hiroaki

	Artist:	Shotei Takahashi (1871-1945) Hiroaki — 松亭高橋、弘明
	Title:	Sakawa Bridge in Evening- V2
	Series:
	Date of first edition?:	1930 (circa)
	Date of this artwork?:	c 1930 (may not be accurate)
	Publisher (first edition)?:	Watanabe Shozaburo — 渡辺
	Publisher (this edition)?:	Watanabe — 渡辺
	Medium (first edition):	Woodblock
	Medium (this edition):	Woodblock
	Format (first edition):	Mitsugiri
	Format (this edition):	Mitsugiri
	DB artwork code:	27164
	Notes (first edition)?:
	Notes (this edition)?:	The following information was taken from the original web listing of this artwork. Note that there may be some inaccuracies: Wednesday, 19 April 2006 Offered is beautiful Japanese woodblock print by the 20th century shin hanga master Takahashi SHOTEI (1871-1945). This is a tanzaku size print 14 7/8” x 6 3/8” titled “Evening Glow at Sakawa Bridge.” A small group of travellers, backlit by the golden glow from the sunset, are crossing a countryside bridge and approaching a local inn. The print dates from the early 1930’s and appears in the 1936 Watanabe catalogue. The publisher is Watanabe Shozaburo. The print is in pristine condition and has never been mounted. The margins are thin, typical of these Watanabe prints. The print is tipped at the top corners to the presentation matt. Great bokashi shading and delicate sunset pastels help create a serene atmosphere. This really is a wonderful print.
	Artist Bio:	Takahashi Shotei was born in Tokyo with the given name of Takahashi Katsutaro. At a young age he was trained in Nihon-ga , the traditional Japanese painting style by his uncle Matsumoto Fuko, and beginning around 1907 Shotei started designing for the Watanabe Color Print Company. Shotei was among the first designers to be recruited into Watanabe's stable of artists, which would later expand to include Goyo, Shinsui, Hasui, Kasamatsu, Koson and Koitsu among others. Many Watanabe prints were designed for export, primarily to North America, where the demand for all things Japanese was high in the early 20th century. By 1923 Shotei had produced nearly 500 designs for Watanabe, when Tokyo was hit by the Great Kanto earthquake -- the worst recorded natural catastrophe in the history of Japan. The fires ignited by the earthquake raged for three days, and Watanabe's print shop and all the woodblocks created by Shotei and the other early shin hanga artists, were destroyed. After the earthquake Shotei created another 250 prints mostly depicting scenic Japanese landscapes in the shin hanga style he had helped to define. He continued to work for Watanabe, but also worked with the publishers Fusui Gabo and Shobido Tanaka, where he had more control over the finished print than was possible with Watanabe. Shotei used a variety of names, signatures and seals during his lifetime. From 1907 until 1922 he used the name Shotei, and after 1922 Hiroaki and Komei.