Hanga
Night in the Desert (Sabaku no yoru) by Chizuko Yoshida — Japanese Color woodblock print; edition 3/50, 1959

Night in the Desert (Sabaku no yoru)

by Chizuko Yoshida

Contemporary MokuhangaSōsaku-hanga
Night Scenes
Date:
1959
Medium:
Color woodblock print; edition 3/50
Edition:
Self-printed

Description

Night in the Desert (Sabaku no yoru), created in 1959 as edition 3 of 50, is a color woodblock print that transports the viewer to an arid landscape after dark. The desert at night is a subject of extreme contrasts: blazing heat gives way to cold, and the featureless terrain of daylight becomes a field of shadow and starlight. Chizuko Yoshida renders this environment with the deep indigo and black inks that Japanese printmakers have used for centuries to depict nighttime, but her desert subject removes the familiar landmarks of Japanese nocturnal scenes, replacing temples and bridges with empty sand and sky. The limited edition of 50 impressions means each print was individually pulled by hand, with subtle variations in ink density and registration that make every copy unique within the edition.

More Prints by Chizuko Yoshida

Impression of an Arab by Chizuko Yoshida

Impression of an Arab

1958

Color woodblock print; edition 44/50

Valley of Butterflies (Tanima no cho) by Chizuko Yoshida

Valley of Butterflies (Tanima no cho)

1979

Photoetching and color woodblock print; artist’s proof

Butterflies—Swarming by Chizuko Yoshida

Butterflies—Swarming

1977

Woodblock print, ink and color on paper

Requiem (Chinkon) No. 2 by Chizuko Yoshida

Requiem (Chinkon) No. 2

1956

Color relief print

More Night Scenes Prints

E

Evening in East Africa

Woodblock print

Evening Shower at Teradomari (Teradomari no yau), from the series "Souvenirs of Travel, Second Series (Tabi miyage dai nishu)" by Kawase Hasui

Evening Shower at Teradomari (Teradomari no yau), from the series "Souvenirs of Travel, Second Series (Tabi miyage dai nishu)"

Teradomari no yau

1921

Color woodblock print; oban

Mount Fuji on a Moonlit Night, Kawai Bridge (Tsukiyo no Fuji [Kawaibashi]), from the series "Selection of Views of the Tokaido (Tokaido fukei senshu)" by Kawase Hasui

Mount Fuji on a Moonlit Night, Kawai Bridge (Tsukiyo no Fuji [Kawaibashi]), from the series "Selection of Views of the Tokaido (Tokaido fukei senshu)"

1947

Color woodblock print; oban

Evening Moon at Nakanoshima, Sapporo (Sapporo Nakanoshima no yuzuki), from the series "Collection of Views of Japan, Eastern Japan Edition (Nihon fukei shu higashi Nihon hen)" by Kawase Hasui

Evening Moon at Nakanoshima, Sapporo (Sapporo Nakanoshima no yuzuki), from the series "Collection of Views of Japan, Eastern Japan Edition (Nihon fukei shu higashi Nihon hen)"

March 1933

Color woodblock print; oban

Featured in Collections

Curated cross-cuts that include this print.

Sōsaku-Hanga: The Creative-Print Movement

Frequently Asked Questions

Night in the Desert (Sabaku no yoru) was created by Chizuko Yoshida (吉田千鶴子) in 1959.

Night in the Desert (Sabaku no yoru) depicts night scenes.