Woman Washing Hair
髪を洗う女
- Date:
- c. 1932
- Medium:
- Color woodblock print
- Edition:
- Self-printed
- Source:
- British Museum
髪を洗う女
Hair-washing scenes connect Senpan to the traditional bijin-ga theme while expressing it through his distinctly modern sosaku-hanga aesthetic. The bold carving and vibrant color are hallmarks of his personal style. Numbered editions of 30-80 copies make these genuinely scarce handmade prints. Expect $500-$1,500 for well-preserved figure studies.
A woman washes her hair — head bent forward over a basin or the edge of a stream, the long hair hanging wet and heavy — in this intimate domestic subject by Senpan from around 1932. The act of washing hair was among the most private daily rituals, one that exposed a woman's physical reality in a way that more composed public presentations did not, and Senpan approaches it with the same direct, unsentimental attention he brought to his outdoor figure compositions. The wet hair's weight and darkness provide the composition's strong visual element.
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Woman Washing Hair (髪を洗う女) was created by Maekawa Senpan (前川千帆) in c. 1932.
Woman Washing Hair depicts daily life.
