Hasui 巴水: Snow at Heian Shrine, Kyoto (Sold)

Artist: Kawase Hasui 巴水
Title: Snow at Heian Shrine, Kyoto 平安神宮の雪（京都）
Date: 1948

Two visitors approach the Heian Shrine, Kyoto during a blustery snowstorm. Hasui rarely lets on that a war has just ravaged his country in these post-war views--he prefers to focus on the timeless aspects of Japan. The Heian Shrine was constructed in 1894 to commemorate the 1100th anniversary of the founding of the city of Kyoto, and was built in the style of the late Heian Period. The first emperor to declare Kyoto as the Heian capital was Emperor Kammu, who ascended to the throne in 781 as the 50th emperor of Japan. This Shinto shrine is dedicated to him. The structure we see here no longer exists, as it was destroyed by fire in 1976 and was rebuilt in 1979. Regarding the seal (right margin) by the renowned printer Ono Gintaro, the late scholar Hisao Shimizu related in a personal communication that Gintaro affixed his seal to works that he was particularly proud of. First edition, with the round Watanabe seal in use during the late 1940s.

Condition: Very good impression, color and condition.
Dimensions: ôban (26.5 x 39 cm)
Publisher: Watanabe Shôzaburô
Literature: Narazaki #492; Hotei #510. Visions of Japan: Kawase Hasui's Masterpieces, Kendall H. Brown, Hotei Publishing, 2004, p. 124, pl. 88.
Seal: Watanabe (postwar seal, as correct for 1st edition)
Signature: Hasui

SKU: HAS540