Hayama- Iyo

One of multiple extant versions of the Hayama, Iyo design, this print illustrates the serial nature of Hasui's production within the shin-hanga publishing system. When a design proved commercially successful, Watanabe Shozaburo would authorize additional runs to meet collector demand, sometimes replacing worn blocks and occasionally adjusting color values. The Iyo Province subject draws on Hasui's documented journeys around the Seto Inland Sea, where he sketched coastal villages and island-scattered seascapes. The composition likely employs the low horizon line characteristic of his marine landscapes, using the broad upper register for sky and subtle cloud formations rendered through flat color washes and graduated bokashi. Washi paper with its slight tooth and absorbency would have been essential in achieving the soft tonal transitions across the water surface.