ASA NO KAWA GOSHOKU
by Ido Masao
Description
Asa no Kawa Goshoku, meaning five colors of the morning river, is an oban woodblock print that captures the chromatic richness of a river at dawn. The title's specificity, identifying five distinct colors, points to Ido Masao's attentiveness to the way water transforms reflected light into a palette that shifts minute by minute as the sun rises. Morning rivers in Japan are subjects of particular beauty because the still air of early hours creates mirror-like surfaces that double the surrounding landscape in reflection. Ido uses the woodblock medium's capacity for precise color separation to render each of the five tones as a distinct ink impression, building up the river's appearance through the same additive process by which dawn itself assembles the day's first light from darkness.
More Prints by Ido Masao
More Landscapes Prints
Lake Kugushi in Wakasa Province (Wakasa Kugushiko), from the series Souvenirs of Travel I (Tabi miyage dai isshu)"
Wakasa Kugushiko
1920
Color woodblock print; oban
Autumn Maple Leaves at Takao, from the album Eight Views of Kyoto (Kyôto hakkei)
Woodblock print
The Beach at Kaiganji in Sanuki Province (Sanuki Kaiganji no hama), from the series "Collection of Views of Japan II, Kansai Edition (Nihon fukei shu II Kansai hen)"
1934
Color woodblock print; oban
Tea Kettle, section of a sheet from the series "Mirror of Stone Rubbings of Views of the Provinces" (Kohon meihitsu ishizuri kagami)
n.d.
Woodblock print; ishizuri-e, section of harimaze sheet
Featured in Collections
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Frequently Asked Questions
ASA NO KAWA GOSHOKU was created by Ido Masao (井堂雅夫).
ASA NO KAWA GOSHOKU depicts landscapes and rivers & lakes.