Oda Kancho: Great Kanto Earthquake: Hodogaya Tunnel Landslide (SOLD)

Artist: Oda Kanchô (1889-1961)
Title: Great Kanto Earthquake: Hodogaya Tunnel Landslide  Date: 1924

Series: Taishō great earthquake folio (Taishō shinkasai mokuhangashū 大正震火災木版画集)

“Landslide in front of the Hodogaya Tunnel on the Tokaido” (Tokaido Hodogaya suido mae yama kuzure). A beautiful rendering of a tragic scene. We see a woman, a man and a child walking past the devastation, their heads bowed in sorrow. The man carries the small child, and the woman has managed to hold on to her umbrella.  Behind them we see the entrance tunnels for Hodogaya Tunnel; both are impassible, although a man seems to be trying his luck in the background, a small bundle of possessions tied around his shoulders. The landscape has been completely upended, with a power pole leaning askew to the left while a trees’ roots stick towards the sky. This series presents woodblock prints that show the aftermath of the Great Kanto earthquake of 1 September, 1923. The enormous loss of life is well-known, and in addition to the devastating fires,  the earthquake is estimated to have triggered almost 90,000 landslides (slope failures) in the aftermath.

The Portland Art Museum has all six works from this series, and they note that the artist was a well-known Nihonga painter from Katase, Kanagawa prefecture, southwest of Tokyo.

Condition: Excellent impression and color; very good condition. Some minor foxing near margins and original mounting remnants, verso. Dimensions: 29.7 x 22.3 cm  
Publisher: Shonen Gahosha
References: See Art Gallery of Greater Victoria online, see Portland Art Museum.

SKU: ODC021S