Misty Morning, Yotsuya Approach (Kiri no asa (Yotsuya mitsuke))
by Kawase Hasui
by Kawase Hasui
Edition period is the primary value driver for Hasui prints. Pre-war lifetime editions with the Watanabe copyright seal (A through D types) consistently achieve 3–5× the price of posthumous reprints of the same design. Condition is the second key factor — unfaded colors, full margins, and absence of foxing or staining are essential. Subject matter (snow > rain > night > other) provides a further modifier within each edition tier.
Yotsuya Mitsuke was a major gateway and intersection on the old Koshu Highway in western Tokyo, and a misty morning here in March 1932 would have shown the moat of the outer palace walls under low cloud, with figures crossing the bridge through drifting mist. The kiri no asa (misty morning) title specifies the particular early-morning atmospheric condition common in spring Tokyo, when overnight cold meets warming air to produce dense low-lying mist. The Yotsuya area retained its old gate architecture into the 1930s.
Woodblock print
1928
Color lithograph
1930
Color lithograph
1948
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Misty Morning, Yotsuya Approach (Kiri no asa (Yotsuya mitsuke)) was created by Kawase Hasui (川瀬巴水) in March 1932.
Misty Morning, Yotsuya Approach (Kiri no asa (Yotsuya mitsuke)) was published by Watanabe Shozaburo (March 1932).
Misty Morning, Yotsuya Approach (Kiri no asa (Yotsuya mitsuke)) depicts urban scenes, spring, and bridges.
