Girl Carrying vegetables

A young figure shouldering or balancing produce — likely daikon, leeks, or seasonal greens — rendered in the unpretentious manner that became Maekawa Senpan's signature within the [sosaku-hanga](/glossary/sosaku-hanga) movement. The composition almost certainly relies on simplified, rounded forms and broad areas of flat color, with the woodgrain of the cherry block left visible in passages of [bokashi](/glossary/bokashi) gradation or open background. Senpan favored everyday subjects over the grand [bijin-ga](/glossary/bijin-ga) and [meisho-e](/glossary/meisho-e) of the [ukiyo-e](/glossary/ukiyo-e) tradition, and prints of children at work or play form a recurring thread in his oeuvre. Self-carved and self-printed in keeping with the jiga-jikoku-jizuri creed of sosaku-hanga, the impression would carry the slight irregularities of hand-baren pressure on washi, lending the figure the warmth and humor for which he is remembered. Cut decisively into a single key block with a limited color palette, the print exemplifies his preference for sincerity of touch over technical refinement.