Bertha Lum

Bertha Boynton Lum (1869–1954) was an American artist and printmaker who became one of the earliest and most accomplished Western practitioners of the Japanese woodblock printing technique, producing a distinctive body of work that blended Asian subjects and methods with Western artistic training. Her pioneering efforts helped introduce Japanese printmaking to American artists and audiences in the early twentieth century, and her prints remain prized by collectors for their delicate beauty and historical significance.

Born on January 10, 1869, in Tipton, Iowa, Lum grew up in Minneapolis and received her initial art training at the Art Students League in New York. She also studied at the Frank Holme School of Illustration in Chicago, where she first encountered Japanese prints and became fascinated by the woodblock medium. This encounter proved transformative: Lum became determined to learn the technique firsthand, a goal that led her to make multiple extended trips to Japan.

Lum first visited Japan in 1903, and it was during this and subsequent visits that she learned the fundamentals of woodblock carving and printing from Japanese craftsmen. She was among the very first Western artists to study the technique in Japan and to produce original woodblock prints using traditional Japanese methods. Like the later sosaku-hanga practitioners, Lum designed, carved, and printed her own blocks, giving her complete artistic control over the finished print.

Her early prints, produced from about 1903 to 1912, depict primarily Japanese subjects — geisha, Kabuki actors, landscapes, and genre scenes — rendered in a style that combines Art Nouveau design sensibilities with Japanese compositional principles. Works such as "Lantern Maker" and "The Fox Woman" demonstrate her ability to synthesize Eastern and Western aesthetics into a harmonious whole. The influence of Art Nouveau is evident in her decorative use of line and her flattened, pattern-oriented compositions, while the Japanese heritage shows in her printing technique, color palette, and subject matter.

Around 1912, Lum and her family moved to Beijing, China, where she lived for several years. This period expanded her subject matter to include Chinese scenes — street vendors, temple festivals, theatrical performances, and domestic life — which she continued to render in the Japanese woodblock technique. Her Chinese-subject prints are notable for their vivid observation of daily life and their sympathetic portrayal of Chinese culture and customs.

In the 1920s and 1930s, Lum's style evolved toward greater simplification and abstraction. Her later prints show bolder compositions, more daring use of color, and a willingness to experiment with the medium. She also expanded her range of subjects to include imaginary and mythological scenes, producing prints inspired by Asian folklore and legend that rank among her most visually striking works.

Lum exhibited widely throughout her career, showing her work at the Panama-Pacific International Exposition in 1915, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Library of Congress, and numerous other venues. She was a member of several professional art organizations and was recognized during her lifetime as a pioneer of cross-cultural artistic exchange. Her 1924 book "Gangplanks to the East" recounted her Asian travels and artistic experiences.

Lum died on February 28, 1954, in Genoa, Italy, where she had been living in her later years. Her prints, numbering perhaps 150 to 200 designs, are held in major collections including the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Library of Congress, the Museum of Fine Arts Boston, the Art Institute of Chicago, and the Honolulu Museum of Art.