| | |
| Artist: | Hagiwara Hideo (b. 1913) |
| Title: | Moth |
| Series: | |
| Date of first edition?: | 1959 |
| Publisher (first edition)?: | Self |
| Publisher (this edition)?: | Self |
| Medium (first edition): | Woodblock |
| Medium (this edition): | Woodblock |
| Format (first edition): | Double Oban
|
| Format (this edition): | Double Oban |
| DB artwork code: | 47365 |
| 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:
ARTIST: HIDEO HAGIWARA (1913-2007)
TITLE: MOTH
EDITION: 30/30
MEDIUM: WOODBLOCK PRINT
DATE: 1959
DIMENSIONS: 27 1/2 X 17 1/2
CONDITION: LIGHT WRINKLING AT MARGINS
Details
Hagiwara's works from the 1950s are totems of abstract expressionism that swept through the contemporary art world at the time. Hagiwara created several designs in that vein but developed a unique voice. While the American abstract expressionist school choose to focus on the artist and the gesturing of the artistic process, Hagiwara decided to take an alternative route. Moth, 1959 focuses on natural materials used in concert with subtle printing effects. Planks of wood with distinctive woodgrain patterns were used to print bold and dark tones of blue, green, and black. A violet square pattern with shallow cut lines, suggesting movement, were used for the fragile soft wings of the moth. The design is simple, elegant, and powerful. The work is deeply contemplative and poignant in its whisper (what does this mean?)--a sharp contrast to the work Pollack or Motherwell produced at this time.
Connoisseur's Note
Hagiwara's work from the late 1950s are among his most sought after designs, due in part to their zen-like sparse compositions and dramatic printing effects. This impression has thick applications of pigment resting on the surface of the paper. The pigments have a sheen that reflect light at various angles, providing an added layer of complexity and depth. This is the type of print that opens to another world as you look more closely. |
|
| Artist Bio: |
Hideo Hideo Hagiwara (萩原 英雄, 1913 – November 4, 2007) was a Japanese artist who worked mainly with woodblock prints. He was born in Kōfu, Yamanashi. Between 1921 and 1929 he lived in Korea and Manchuria. He studied at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts, where he graduated at the Oil Painting Section in 1938. While still there he attended Un'ichi Hiratsuka's extracurricular woodblock printing course, and in the same year he became quality controller at the Takamizawa Woodblock Print Company. He wasconscripted into the army in 1943. In 1945 he had lost his house, his atelier and nearly all his early works. Around 1950 he had sufficiently recovered to start painting again. At the same time he started making Sōsaku Hanga, both figurative and abstract prints. He was known as a constant innovator and he was generally considered one of the best post-WWII Sōsaku Hanga artists.
|
|
