Calendar Sheet May 1943

"Calendar Sheet May 1943" was produced for one of the small calendar print series that circulated among collectors during the wartime years, when materials were scarce and ordinary print production was severely curtailed. Dated to May, the image carries spring motifs — late cherry blossoms, irises, fresh foliage, or a seasonal landscape — handled in the simplified, atmospheric manner Onchi brought to all his nature subjects. The calendar format constrained the image to a small, often almost square sheet, demanding economy of means: a few blocks, restrained pigment, and decisive composition. Onchi was a central figure in the Ichimoku-kai (First Thursday Society), which kept the [sosaku-hanga](/glossary/sosaku-hanga) movement alive throughout the war by gathering monthly to share new work, and small calendar prints from this period reflect that determination to continue making art under difficult conditions. The print thus carries historical interest alongside its aesthetic content, marking a moment when self-printed Japanese woodblock continued as a private, sustaining practice when the public market for prints had largely collapsed.