Hasui 巴水: Owani Hot Springs, Aomori 大鰐温泉（青森県）

Artist: Kawase Hasui 巴水 (1883-1957)
Title: Owani Hot Springs, Aomori 日本風景集　東日本篇　大鰐温泉（青森県）

Series: Collection of Scenic Views of Japan, Eastern Japan Edition 東日本篇
Date: 1935

Beautifully atmospheric evening scene of spa buildings that line up along the shallow Hira river. Narazaki wrote that this print is “An adept composition expressing the deep mood of night. It was drawn on 5 September 1934, produced on November of that year and published in May 1935.” The National Museum of Asian Art has a trial print of this work that is a daylight version in the Muller collection. That daytime color scheme was never put into production, as Hasui and Watanabe must have rightly preferred the feeling of this evening scene. Aomori is a resort area that is famous for its hot springs– Awani Onsen Village is still in business, with a history that dates back 800 years. However, it is doubtful that the modern buildings are as beautiful as these prewar wooden ones that Hasui visited in 1934. With the prewar Watanabe “D” seal, right margin,  that was in use between 1932 and 1942. An early printing of a scarce design.

Condition: Excellent impression, color and condiition.
Dimensions: ôban (326 x 38.5 cm)
Publisher: Watanabe
Literature: Narazaki Muneshige, Kawase Hasui mokuhanga shu (Kawase Hasui, Collection of Woodblock Prints), 1979, no. 219. Kendall Brown, Kawase Hasui: The complete woodblock prints, Hotei Publishing, 2003, no. 311. See National Museum of Asian Art, Virginia Museum of Fine Arts collections.
Seal: Kawase
Signature: Hasui

SKU: HAC311H