Kamezaki

Kamezaki is a coastal town in Handa City, Aichi Prefecture, situated on the western shore of Chita Peninsula where it meets the Kinuura sea inlet. Historically a prosperous port for the brewing and shipping industries, Kamezaki retains a traditional townscape of earthen-walled storehouses and fishing boats. Hasui's view likely depicts the harbor or waterfront, possibly featuring beached wooden fishing vessels, storage warehouses with their distinctive plastered walls, or the low, flat horizon characteristic of this sheltered coastal setting. The Tokai region coast presented Hasui with different visual material than the Pacific or Japan Sea shores he more frequently depicted—its calm, enclosed waters and working harbor atmosphere required a quieter, less dramatically atmospheric treatment. The print belongs to Hasui's practice of documenting provincial port towns whose traditional character was already under threat from industrialization during the Taisho and early Showa periods.