Mt Unzen in Hizen Province — 雲仙岳
- Medium:
- Woodblock print
- Format:
- Oban
- Publisher:
- Watanabe Shozaburo
- Source:
- Japanese Art Open Database
$1,000–$10,000. Common subjects: $1,000–$3,000. Key value factors: Yamakawa's limited output and early death at 46 make his prints relatively scarce. Quality bijin-ga command steady prices.
Mt Unzen in Hizen Province depicts the volcanic mountain complex in what is now Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu. Unzen, an active volcanic group rising to over 1,400 meters, is famous for its jigoku, or "hells," areas of intense geothermal activity where sulfurous steam erupts from the earth and boiling mud pools bubble among barren, mineral-stained rocks.
Shuho's oban woodblock print renders this dramatic geological landscape with attention to the unique visual qualities that volcanic terrain produces: the stark contrast between lush lower slopes and the blasted, fuming summit areas; the mineral-tinted pools and streams; and the ever-present columns of steam rising against the sky. The Hizen Province designation places this work within the traditional system of geographic naming, though by Shuho's time the modern prefectural system had long replaced the old provincial boundaries. The print connects to the Japanese tradition of depicting meisho, famous scenic locations.
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.
Mt Unzen in Hizen Province — 雲仙岳 was created by Yamakawa Shuho (山川秀峰).
Mt Unzen in Hizen Province — 雲仙岳 was published by Watanabe Shozaburo.
Mt Unzen in Hizen Province — 雲仙岳 depicts landscapes.
