Carp
by Ohara Koson
- Date:
- 1926
- Medium:
- Color woodblock print; oban
- Format:
- Oban
- Dimensions:
- 36.2 × 24.1 cm
- Publisher:
- Watanabe Shozaburo
by Ohara Koson
Koson's vast output of ~450 designs spans birds, flowers, fish, insects, and occasional landscapes. While his large production keeps most prints accessible, early Kokkeido-period impressions with muted, elegant Meiji-era coloring are distinctly more sought after than the brighter later Watanabe editions.
Carp — the powerful freshwater fish of great longevity and persistence in Japanese culture — appear in this 1926 oban print with the muscular vitality that made them such frequent subjects in Japanese art. Koson renders the carp with close attention to the scales' overlapping pattern, the fins' translucent membranes, and the body's flex as the fish moves through water. The carp's association with perseverance and ambition gave the subject cultural weight beyond its visual appeal; his treatment honors both dimensions.
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Carp was created by Ohara Koson (小原古邨) in 1926.
Carp was published by Watanabe Shozaburo (1926).
Carp depicts fish and animals.
Carp measures 36.2 × 24.1 cm (Oban format).
