Hasui 巴水: Kanetsuki Hall Bell Tower Okayama 岡山之かねつき堂

Artist: Kawase Hasui 川瀬巴水 (1883-1957)
Title: Kanetsuki Hall Bell Tower Okayama 岡山之かねつき堂

Date: 1947

View of the historic Okayama Castle town bell tower (kanetsukidô), which was located beneath Okayama Castle itself. During the Edo period, the bell was sounded by retainers throughout the day upon the hour to announce the time. This bell tower itself was destroyed by Allied bombing in 1945, so this 1947 work is interesting as an homage to a landmark that was destroyed by war. Hasui seems to have used a photograph taken before the war to create this print, as the angle and the details are very similar to the known photograph. He removed some utility poles and added the rain and rain-slicked streets. Hasui also seems to have added the kimono-clad man walking away from us with a yellow umbrella at left. The only other Hasui prints that this dealer can think of that were based on photographs are the Washington Monument design and several of the World War II troop designs that the military government must have insisted upon.  It seems that the bell tower itself was never rebuilt, and only the damaged original bell and a scale  model remain preserved locally in a museum.

With the round postwar Watanabe seal in red, lower right that is consistent with a first edition print that was printed during the artist’s lifetime.

Condition: Excellent impression, color and condition.
Dimensions: ôban (38.8 x 26.5 cm)
Publisher: Watanabe Shôzaburô
Literature: Hotei #501. See Art Institute of Chicago, LACMA, National Museum of Asian Art, Chazen Museum of Art, Minneapolis Institute of Art Seal: Kawase Signature: Hasui

SKU: HAC501R