C
This Occupations series print shows a carpenter (daiku) practicing one of Japan's most respected traditional trades. Wada's straightforward, dignified treatment of working people gives these prints both artistic and ethnographic value. Lifetime Watanabe editions sell for $500-$1,000, making the Occupations series one of the most accessible entry points into shin-hanga collecting.
"Carpenter" (Daiku) is a color woodblock print from around 1940 by Wada Sanzo, part of his series documenting traditional Japanese trades and occupations. The carpenter holds an honored position in Japanese culture, where wood construction has been the dominant building tradition for millennia. Wada depicts the craftsman at work with his specialized tools: the kanna hand plane, the nomi chisel, the nokogiri saw designed to cut on the pull stroke rather than the push. The figure's posture and concentration convey the physical skill required to join timber without nails using mortise-and-tenon joinery. Wada's color woodblock technique is itself a product of the woodworking tradition, with the cherry blocks carved by specialized craftsmen whose skills parallel those of the depicted carpenter. The print honors a trade that literally built Japan.
Curated cross-cuts that include this print.
Carpenter (大工) was created by Wada Sanzo (和田三造) in c. 1940.
Carpenter depicts craftspeople, daily life, and animals.
