Miotsukushi
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Source:
- Japanese Art Open Database
Key value factors: As self-carved and self-printed works, sosaku-hanga value is tied to the artist's reputation and edition size. Larger formats, earlier editions, and historically significant works command the highest prices.
A woodblock print referencing Miotsukushi, a term that carries layered meanings in Japanese culture. As a chapter title in The Tale of Genji, it refers to channel markers used in the waterways near Naniwa (modern Osaka) and serves as a metaphor for navigation and longing. Nakazawa may be depicting either the literary scene or the actual waterway markers of the Osaka bay area, where wooden stakes were planted to guide boats through shallow channels. The subject connects to his Genji illustrations and to his interest in Osaka-area scenes, bridging classical literature with physical geography. The dual resonance of the title, both practical and poetic, is characteristic of themes that appealed to educated Japanese print collectors of the early twentieth century.
Wakasa Kugushiko
1920
Color woodblock print; oban
Woodblock print
1934
Color woodblock print; oban
n.d.
Woodblock print; ishizuri-e, section of harimaze sheet
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Miotsukushi was created by Hiromitsu Nakazawa (中沢弘光).
Miotsukushi depicts landscapes and rivers & lakes.
