Single block print, Pagoda
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Source:
- wbp
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 pagoda rises through the composition in this single-block woodblock print, its stacked roofs creating a distinctive vertical rhythm of repeating horizontal eaves. Inagaki carves the architectural subject from one block, relying on the contrast between inked and uninked areas to define the structure's form. Pagodas, originally Buddhist reliquary towers imported from the Asian continent, became iconic elements of the Japanese landscape, and their tiered silhouettes are among the most recognizable forms in Japanese art. The single-block technique strips the subject of color, forcing the pagoda's architectural geometry to carry the image. Each roof tier, bracket set, and spire element is defined purely through carved line and the interplay of dark ink against pale paper.
伏見稲荷
Woodblock print
c. 1832/38
Color woodblock print; oban
Woodblock print
Uji Byodoin no ichibu
1921
Color woodblock print; oban
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Single block print, Pagoda was created by Inagaki Toshijiro (稲垣稔次郎).
Single block print, Pagoda depicts temples & shrines and pagodas.
