Portrait of James A. Michener
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Edition:
- Self-printed
- Source:
- Honolulu Museum of Art
$1,000–$8,000. Common prints: $1,000–$2,500. Key value factors: As a pioneer of sosaku-hanga and influential art critic, Hakutei's prints carry historical significance. Early self-carved prints are most valued.
This woodblock portrait of James A. Michener, the American author and collector, documents a significant cross-cultural connection in the history of Japanese printmaking. Michener was an avid collector of Japanese prints whose 1959 book "Japanese Prints: From the Early Masters to the Modern" helped introduce the full sweep of Japanese printmaking to Western readers. That Hakutei, a founding figure of the sosaku-hanga movement, chose to make a portrait of this American advocate suggests a relationship of mutual regard. The woodblock medium gives the portrait a directness that photography lacks, with every line bearing the evidence of Hakutei's hand on the carving tool. The print sits at the intersection of East-West cultural exchange that characterized the postwar art world.
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Portrait of James A. Michener was created by Ishii Hakutei (石井柏亭).
Portrait of James A. Michener depicts portraits.
