Hanga
Sunset at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo by Kawase Hasui — Japanese Woodblock print

Sunset at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo

by Kawase Hasui

Shin-hanga
Night Scenes
Medium:
Woodblock print
Image courtesy of
Japanese Art Open Database

Description

This print depicts the moat and stone embankment walls of the Imperial Palace in Tokyo, rendered under the warm, diffused light of a setting sun. Hasui likely rendered the still water of the moat reflecting the golden and rose tones of the sky, a compositional device central to his meisho-e approach. The massive dressed-stone walls of the Edo Castle fortifications provide a strong geometric anchor, contrasting with the soft bokashi gradations of the sky. Published within the shin-hanga framework under Watanabe Shozaburo, this urban landscape exemplifies Hasui's ability to find lyrical calm in the monumental architecture of modern Tokyo. A stand of pine or willow along the embankment would add organic texture against the stonework.

More Prints by Kawase Hasui

Cormorant Fishing on Nagaragawa — 鵜飼（長良川） by Kawase Hasui

Cormorant Fishing on Nagaragawa — 鵜飼（長良川）

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Namari Spa — 岩手県鉛温泉 by Kawase Hasui

Namari Spa — 岩手県鉛温泉

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Dusk- Tasogare — たそがれ by Kawase Hasui

Dusk- Tasogare — たそがれ

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Okutama in the Rain by Kawase Hasui

Okutama in the Rain

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More Night Scenes Prints

E

Evening in East Africa

Woodblock print

E

Evening Shower at Teradomari (Teradomari no yau), from the series "Souvenirs of Travel, Second Series (Tabi miyage dai nishu)"

Teradomari no yau

1921

Color woodblock print; oban

Mount Fuji on a Moonlit Night, Kawai Bridge (Tsukiyo no Fuji [Kawaibashi]), from the series "Selection of Views of the Tokaido (Tokaido fukei senshu)" by Kawase Hasui

Mount Fuji on a Moonlit Night, Kawai Bridge (Tsukiyo no Fuji [Kawaibashi]), from the series "Selection of Views of the Tokaido (Tokaido fukei senshu)"

1947

Color woodblock print; oban

Evening Moon at Nakanoshima, Sapporo (Sapporo Nakanoshima no yuzuki), from the series "Collection of Views of Japan, Eastern Japan Edition (Nihon fukei shu higashi Nihon hen)" by Kawase Hasui

Evening Moon at Nakanoshima, Sapporo (Sapporo Nakanoshima no yuzuki), from the series "Collection of Views of Japan, Eastern Japan Edition (Nihon fukei shu higashi Nihon hen)"

March 1933

Color woodblock print; oban

Featured in Collections

Curated cross-cuts that include this print.

Shin-Hanga: Japan's Twentieth-Century Print Revival

Frequently Asked Questions

Sunset at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo was created by Kawase Hasui (川瀬巴水).

Sunset at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo depicts night scenes.