Udo Turret, Kumamoto Castle (Kumamotojo Udoyagura)
by Kawase Hasui
- Date:
- 1948
- Medium:
- Color woodblock print
- Format:
- Oban
- Publisher:
- Watanabe Shozaburo
- Edition:
- Published by Watanabe Shozaburo
- Source:
- Art Institute of Chicago
by Kawase Hasui
Castle subjects by Hasui draw collectors interested in historic Japanese architecture. Himeji Castle, as Japan's most celebrated surviving original structure, consistently performs well — lifetime editions bring $800–$3,000. Seasonal variants (cherry blossoms, snow) of castle subjects command premiums over plain architectural views. Postwar lifetime editions (1946–1957) bearing the small 6mm J-seal represent authentic lifetime impressions but from the artist's final decade.
The Udo Turret of Kumamoto Castle is one of the original Edo-period towers that survived the castle's partial destruction in 1877, its massive stone base and plastered white walls representative of Kumamoto's formidable defensive architecture. This 1948 print likely shows the turret from below, the stone ishigaki (stone-work) rising above the castle moat, the white plaster walls catching the light above. Kumamoto Castle was among the finest castle complexes in western Japan, and the surviving turrets preserved its architectural character.
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Udo Turret, Kumamoto Castle (Kumamotojo Udoyagura) was created by Kawase Hasui (川瀬巴水) in 1948.
Udo Turret, Kumamoto Castle (Kumamotojo Udoyagura) was published by Watanabe Shozaburo (1948).
Udo Turret, Kumamoto Castle (Kumamotojo Udoyagura) depicts castles.
