Tanabata Festival
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Edition:
- Self-printed
- Source:
- mfa
Typical Price
$500–$4,000. Common subjects: $500–$1,500. Key value factors: Maekawa's early sosaku-hanga works are historically significant. Bold, expressive prints are most valued.
Description
The Tanabata Festival — the star festival celebrated on the seventh day of the seventh month, when the Milky Way supposedly allows the separated stellar lovers to meet — is Senpan's subject in this undated print, distinct from his "Milky Way Festival" version. The Tanabata's customs of writing wishes on paper strips and hanging them from bamboo branches created a distinctive visual spectacle that lent itself to printmaking, and Senpan's version — likely emphasizing the festival's communal outdoor character — brings his direct figural and compositional approach to one of summer's most beloved celebrations.
More Prints by Maekawa Senpan
More Summer Prints
Bull Festival at Koryuji
広隆寺牛祭
Woodblock print
February (The Annual Festival of the Fushimi Inari)
二月 (伏見稲荷大社祭)
second half 20th century
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
July (Gorgeous Procession of Yama-hoko or the Floats at the Gion Festival)
七月 (祇園祭山鉾巡行)
second half 20th century
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
August (The Bonfire Festival of the Daimonji Hill Viewed from the Sanjo Bridge)
八月 (三条大橋より大文字)
second half 20th century
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Featured in Collections
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Frequently Asked Questions
Tanabata Festival was created by Maekawa Senpan (前川千帆).
Tanabata Festival depicts summer.