Rain on the sloping Kinokunisaka street is a masterful exercise in atmospheric mood. This Watanabe-published work combines the collectible rain theme with a recognizable Tokyo location. Lifetime editions typically sell for $1,500-$3,000. The wet pavement reflections and misty distance required layered printing that distinguishes early impressions from later, flatter reprints.
Rain falls on the steep shopping street of Kinokunisaka in Tokyo during the tsuyu rainy season, 1938, the wet pavement reflecting shop signs and passing umbrellas as pedestrians navigate the downpour. Kasamatsu's rainy season urban prints from the late 1930s represent some of his most technically accomplished work in conveying the specific visual experience of Tokyo in rain — the way reflections multiply on wet stone, the way rain flattens perspective and softens edges, the particular grey-blue light of an overcast summer sky.
1940
Woodblock print
1934
Color woodblock print; oban
Boshu Taikai
1925
Color woodblock print; oban
September 1931
Color woodblock print; oban
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Kinokunisaka in the Rainy Season (紀国坂 梅雨) was created by Shiro Kasamatsu (笠松紫浪) in 1938.
Kinokunisaka in the Rainy Season uses Bokashi, Nishiki-e, and Moku-hanga, on color woodblock print.
Kinokunisaka in the Rainy Season was published by Watanabe Shozaburo (1938).
Kinokunisaka in the Rainy Season depicts seascapes and rain.
