Untitled (inuzuka-taisui)
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Source:
- Ohmi Gallery
Key value factors: Edition order (first Watanabe/Doi printing vs. posthumous reprints) is crucial. Snow scenes, night views, and bijin-ga typically command premiums. Publisher seals and artist signatures authenticate first editions.
This untitled print by Inuzuka Taisui is a woodblock work belonging to the [shin-hanga](/glossary/shin-hanga) [kacho-e](/glossary/kacho-e) tradition of the early twentieth century. The relationship between Japanese woodblock botanical prints and Western botanical illustration presents an interesting parallel: both traditions valued accurate depiction of plant species, but their purposes diverged significantly. Western botanical illustration served taxonomic science, requiring precise documentation of morphological features for identification purposes. Japanese kacho-e, by contrast, served aesthetic and cultural functions, with accuracy valued insofar as it enhanced the viewer's recognition and emotional response to familiar plants. Taisui's prints occupy the Japanese side of this divide, treating botanical subjects as objects of beauty rather than scientific specimens.
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Untitled (inuzuka-taisui) was created by Inuzuka Taisui (犬塚泰水).
Untitled (inuzuka-taisui) depicts birds & flowers and abstract.
