Aizu Yanaizu Fukushima
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Source:
- Art Gallery of Greater Victoria
- Image courtesy of
- Art Gallery of Greater Victoria
Description
This print depicts Yanaizu, a small river town in Aizu, Fukushima Prefecture — the region that anchored Saito Kiyoshi's artistic identity throughout his career. Yanaizu sits along the Tadami River and is known for the Enzoji Temple perched dramatically on a rocky outcropping above the water. Saito's treatment of this subject likely employs his characteristic reduction of architectural and landscape elements to bold, simplified planes of color, carved with broad chisels to leave visible tool marks that animate the surface. The composition probably balances the weight of temple structures against surrounding rock and water using flat areas of tone built through multiple keyblock impressions on washi. This meisho-e subject — a famous place in his home prefecture — carries personal resonance beyond picturesque convention, reflecting Saito's lifelong commitment to Tohoku landscapes as serious artistic territory.
More Prints by Saito Kiyoshi
More Landscapes Prints
Lake Kugushi in Wakasa Province (Wakasa Kugushiko), from the series Souvenirs of Travel I (Tabi miyage dai isshu)"
Wakasa Kugushiko
1920
Color woodblock print; oban
Autumn Maple Leaves at Takao, from the album Eight Views of Kyoto (Kyôto hakkei)
Woodblock print
The Beach at Kaiganji in Sanuki Province (Sanuki Kaiganji no hama), from the series "Collection of Views of Japan II, Kansai Edition (Nihon fukei shu II Kansai hen)"
1934
Color woodblock print; oban
Tea Kettle, section of a sheet from the series "Mirror of Stone Rubbings of Views of the Provinces" (Kohon meihitsu ishizuri kagami)
n.d.
Woodblock print; ishizuri-e, section of harimaze sheet
Featured in Collections
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Frequently Asked Questions
Aizu Yanaizu Fukushima was created by Saito Kiyoshi (斎藤清).
Aizu Yanaizu Fukushima depicts landscapes and village scenes.