Nichibotsu (Sunset)
- Date:
- 1937
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Edition:
- Self-printed
- Source:
- Art Gallery of Greater Victoria
Description
A stark black-and-white woodblock print in which a radiating circular sun sits at the top center, its jagged rays cutting through a solid black sky. Below, dense interlocking black shapes—curving ribbon-like forms, angular lattice patterns, and abstracted silhouettes suggestive of foliage or figures—fill the lower two-thirds of the composition against the bare white paper. Munakata's 1937 print reduces the scene to bold, high-contrast graphic forms with no shading or gradation, giving the sunset an emblematic rather than naturalistic character.
More Prints by Shiko Munakata
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
Nichibotsu (Sunset) was created by Shiko Munakata (棟方志功) in 1937.
Nichibotsu (Sunset) depicts landscapes, religious, and seascapes.