Shimozawa Kihachiro: Lake Towada 十和田湖

Artist: Shimozawa Kihachiro (1901-1986)

Title: Lake Towada 十和田湖  Date: 1941, June

Series: 100 Views of New Japan 新日本百景 (Shin Nihon Hyakkei)

Treetop view across Lake Towada, Aomori Prefecture. It seems to be autumn, and there are no people nor conveyances to be seen. We seem to be looking from the Kankodai viewpoint, with the Ogura Peninsula to the right and the mountains in the distance across the lake. We feel the isolation of the landscape, with the bright orange tops of the trees reaching up towards our view. Happily, this view remains largely the same today.

Shimozawa was born in Aomori Prefecture, only two years older than Munakata. He spent much of his life traveling around Japan, capturing the northern landscapes with a large backpack filled with art materials. After moving to Tokyo as a young man, he became acquainted with Hiratsuka Un’ichi, and in 1924 he was accepted into the Teiten. Shimozawa reportedly introduced Munakata to Hiratsuka, an important meeting that changed the course of Munakata’s career, re-orienting it towards printmaking.

More than thirty sosaku-hanga print artists collaborated to create this series of prints, published between 1938-41, as regional conflicts eventually ignited into World War II. Only 39 were ever issued; the last 29 were edited by Maekawa Senpan. According to the Art Gallery of New South Wales website, publication of this series was stopped by the Japanese authorities during WWII who feared that the interior of Japan would become known to its enemies. This would not be surprising given the paranoia of wartime, but it is also probable that there were other factors, including limited supplies and artists conscripted into the war machine.

The series title is stamped on the right margin in red, and the name of the artist’s group “Nihon Hanga Kyokai (Sen)” is stamped lower left. 

Condition: Excellent impression, color and condition. Never framed. The artist’s name has been written in pencil lower right margin, but it is not known if this was written by the artist himself. 

Literature: British Museum collection, Carnegie Museum of Art, Museum of Modern Art, Wakayama.   Dimensions: 25.2 x 33 cm

SKU: SNH040