Hasui: Snow at Shirahige 雪の白ひげ (Sold)

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Artist: Kawase Hasui 巴水 (1883-1957)
Title: Snow at Shirahige 雪の白ひげ (Yuki no Shirahige)
Series: Twelve Scenes of Tokyo (Tokyo junidai)
Date: 1920

Hasui himself said about this work “...Mukôjima still retains its former appearance, and this imbues it with a unique charm. On this particular day, it had been snowing heavily since the morning...I left home in this incessant snow to visit the Hyakka garden. En route I happened upon this scene– a view towards the Imado ferry from the foot of Shirahige Bridge.” Very peaceful view from the east bank of the Sumida River in Sumida City in northeast Tokyo. Even 100 years later it seems hard to believe that this view is not of a country village, but it is actually near the heart of Tokyo, the most populous city in the world. The simple wooden Shirahige Bridge  from 1914 was rebuilt as a steel structure in 1931. It was a short walk from the Mukojima-Hyakka gardens that Hasui mentions in his commentary. Here a simple wooden structure (perhaps a warehouse or boathouse) has a short ramp to the river, and three modest wooden boats are moored close to shore. The view across the river shows no signs of tall buildings or dense modern development.

Condition: Excellent impression, color and condition. Mint.

Dimensions: ôban (26.3 x 38.8 cm)
Publisher: Watanabe Shôzaburô
Literature: Hotei #34, Hotei #34. See Harvard Art Museum, British Museum, Smithsonian.
Seal: Sui (yin-yang type)
Signature: Hasui

SKU: HAC834K