A spare rural composition of trees standing in an open field, this Watanabe-published work exemplifies the quiet simplicity that gives Kasamatsu's landscapes their meditative quality. Lifetime editions sell for $800-$2,000. The uncluttered composition and open space distinguish this from his more detailed architectural and garden scenes, offering visual calm in a collection.
Trees stand scattered across an open field — perhaps the wide agricultural plain of the Kanto, or a pastoral scene from one of Kasamatsu's rural travels — their forms isolated against the sky in a composition that emphasizes the relationship between horizontal ground and vertical growth. The trees-in-a-field subject removed from any specific architectural or geographic context becomes a study in form: how tree species express themselves in their branching structure, how a group of trees occupies space differently from a single specimen, how flat land and open sky create a particular quality of exposure.
Wakasa Kugushiko
1920
Color woodblock print; oban
Woodblock print
1934
Color woodblock print; oban
n.d.
Woodblock print; ishizuri-e, section of harimaze sheet
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Trees in a Field was created by Shiro Kasamatsu (笠松紫浪).
Trees in a Field uses Bokashi, Nishiki-e, and Moku-hanga, on woodblock print.
Trees in a Field was published by Watanabe Shozaburo.
Trees in a Field depicts landscapes and trees.
