Bijin in Snow
by Miki Suizan
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Format:
- Oban
- Publisher:
- Watanabe Shozaburo
- Source:
- Japanese Art Open Database
by Miki Suizan
$800–$6,000. Snow and night scenes tend to command premium prices for this artist. Key value factors: Miki Suizan's Kyoto maiko prints are the most popular. Condition and subject matter are key value factors.
A beautiful woman stands amid falling snow, her kimono pulled close against the cold. Suizan merges two of his primary subjects here: bijin-ga portraiture and the winter landscapes of Kyoto. The figure's dark hair and layered garments contrast sharply with the white ground, while scattered snowflakes, printed with careful spacing across the surface, create a sense of hushed stillness. Suizan's bijin-ga work owes much to the Kyoto tradition of idealized feminine beauty that runs from Edo-period Kamigata ukiyo-e through Meiji nihonga painting. Unlike the more worldly geisha portraits of Tokyo shin-hanga, his women tend toward a quiet elegance that reflects the reserved aesthetic of the old capital. The snow setting amplifies this restrained mood, wrapping the figure in seasonal silence.
Woodblock print
c. 1832/38
Color woodblock print; oban
Yuki no Miyajima
1929
Color woodblock print; oban
1932
Woodblock print
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Bijin in Snow was created by Miki Suizan (三木翠山).
Bijin in Snow was published by Watanabe Shozaburo.
Bijin in Snow depicts snow scenes and bijin-ga.
