House (Ikkenya)

Rendered in etching on paper as edition 54 of 100, this 1972 print depicts an ikkenya — a solitary house, a single dwelling standing apart from its neighbors. Tanaka's approach here distills his architectural subject to its essentials: the massing of roof and wall, the placement of openings, the relationship of the structure to its immediate surroundings. The numbered edition indicates a work produced for the print market during a period when Tanaka was building his international reputation.