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Shinto Torii Gate
by Tomoe (Shotei Takahashi copy by Watanabe)

Original caretaker of this artwork: artelino - Japanese prints  Art auctions of Japanese and Chinese prints

	Artist:	Tomoe (Shotei Takahashi copy by Watanabe) — ともゑ
	Title:	Shinto Torii Gate (given title; official title unknown)
	Series:
	Date of first edition?:	circa 1950-1980
	Publisher (first edition)?:	Watanabe — 渡辺
	Publisher (this edition)?:	Watanabe — 渡辺
	Medium (first edition):	Woodblock
	Medium (this edition):	Woodblock
	Format (first edition):	Postcard
	Format (this edition):	Postcard
	DB artwork code:	45736
	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: Title Red Torii in a Snowy Day Artist not identified Description Postcard sized print. Red torii in a village in a snowy day. Seal Tomoe. Dated Ca. 1930s. Medium/Technique Woodblock print. Impression Very good. Colors Very good. Condition Very good ... Paper slightly toned. Toning lines along left and the bottom edges. Light creases. Width Item 3.5 inches = 8.8 cm Height Item 5.5 inches = 14.0 cm
	Artist Bio:	Many of the prints signed "Tomoe" are clearly scenes by Takahashi Shotei and were sold by Watanabe from around the 1960s. Unusually, Watanabe Shoichiro, in an email reply to a colleague around 2008, stated that the prints are by Kawase Hasui: see the following email: ######################### Dear Al, Thank you very much for your email and enquires. The artist of the post card sized prints is Kawase Hasui. The seal is sounded "Tomoe (a Whirl)". Tomoe is the meaning of "Ha". On the other hand, "Sui" means "Mizu (Water)". He sometimes used "Tomoe" as his artist name for some small sized prints, instead of "Hasui". I hope this information is available for your enquiry. Sincerely, Shoichiro Watanabe ######################### What Shoichiro is suggesting here is that "Tomo" is a reading for Hasui's first kanji "巴", and "e" (in Tomo-e) is a reading for "画" meaning brush-stroke; picture. Thus, Tomoe means "painted by Hasui". My guess here is that Watanabe Tadasu, the second owner of Watanabe Woodblock Prints, decided to sell the postcards as being by the more famous Hasui, rather than by the lesser-known Takahashi Shotei, to increase sales.