Abstract Prints (2049)
Abstract prints represent a revolutionary departure in Japanese printmaking, emerging primarily through the sosaku-hanga (creative prints) movement of the mid-twentieth century. While traditional ukiyo-e and shin-hanga were rooted in representational imagery, abstract works embraced non-figurative composition, exploring color, texture, and form for their own expressive potential. The abstract turn in Japanese printmaking gained international recognition in the 1950s and 1960s, when artists like Yoshida Hodaka, Maki Haku, and Tajima Hiroyuki won major prizes at the Sao Paulo and Venice Biennales. These artists developed distinctive approaches to abstraction — from Maki's layered cement-and-ink surfaces to Tajima's vibrant geometric compositions — that drew on Japanese aesthetic principles while engaging with global modernist movements. The woodblock medium proved uniquely suited to abstract expression, offering possibilities for textural experimentation through woodgrain impression, selective inking, and the interaction between handmade washi paper and carved surfaces. Many abstract printmakers exploited the material qualities of the block itself, allowing the wood's natural grain to become an active compositional element rather than merely a vehicle for an image.
Artists Known for Abstract
Germinate
1959
Color woodblock print; edition 3/50
Untitled
c. 1950
Color woodblock print
Day Dream (Mahiru no yume)
1952
Color woodblock print
Tsunagagia
Woodblock print
Ginga F (The Milky Way (F))
Woodblock print
STAR FOREST
Woodblock print
Work 76 - 25
Woodblock print
Tear Stone
Woodblock print
Untitled (hisui-sugiura)
Woodblock print
Untitled (yuji-hiratsuka)
Woodblock print
Bingata
1975
Color woodblock print; edition 42/128
Calmness
1954
Woodblock print
Action (4) B
Woodblock print
Everything was Alive Here (Koko dewa subete no mono ga ikite ita) A
1957
Color woodblock print
Form (Forumu), from the folio "First Thursday Collection Vol. 5 (Ichimoku-shu)"
1949 (printed 1950s)
Color woodblock print
TotalCount
1958
Woodblock print
Kitsuneame
Woodblock print
Yellow Facing Forms
Woodblock print
Kongamaluno (Kongamaruno)
Woodblock print
3/4 Rosette with Fleur de Lis from Center
1930s
Woodblock print
Unknown, Face and Shell
Woodblock print
Untitled (yoshida-masaji)
Woodblock print
Unichi Hiratsuka (1895-1997)
Woodblock print
Eyes
1952
Color woodblock print
One Day at My Old Home
1967
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Gathering of Circles
Woodblock print
Face
顔
1950
Color woodblock print
Untitled
Woodblock print
Work 75-24
1975
Color woodblock print; edition 132/204
Poem 92-18
Woodblock print
Untitled (toru-mabuchi)
Woodblock print
Untitled (suga-tatehiko)
Woodblock print
Untitled (ido-masao)
Woodblock print
Queen's Coffin
Woodblock print
Fukuroi: Annual Growth Rings
Woodblock print
Pierrot and His Son
Woodblock print
The Southern Cross (C)
1967
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Poem 71-43
Woodblock print
Untitled (ryusei-okamoto)
Woodblock print
Mirror Number One
1970
Woodblock print
Blue and Red B
1974
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Mr. Delo's Yello Wall
Woodblock print
Rays of the Morning Sun
Woodblock print
Untitled (joichi-hoshi)
Woodblock print
Poem 72-81
Woodblock print
Untitled (shima-seien)
Woodblock print
Horiagete
1954
Woodblock print
A Tomb with Wings
Woodblock print
Almanac
Woodblock print
Nostalgia in Blue, Shôwa period, dated 1968
Woodblock print
Nontitle 2
Woodblock print
Untitled (hiroyuki-tajima)
Woodblock print
Necklace A (Kubikazari A), Shôwa period, dated 1964
Woodblock print
Poem No. 22: A Seashell
抒情 No.22 貝殻
1953
Color woodblock print
POEM 71-64
Woodblock print
Untitled (maekawa-senpan)
Woodblock print
Dialogue With Red (B)
Woodblock print
Volcanic Rocks B - 火山岩B
Woodblock print
The Great Dipper (B)
1969
Woodblock print, ink and color on paper
Evidence A (Sekizo A)
1963
Color woodblock print
Related Subjects
Frequently Asked Questions
Abstract prints represent a revolutionary departure in Japanese printmaking, emerging primarily through the sosaku-hanga (creative prints) movement of the mid-twentieth century. While traditional ukiyo-e and shin-hanga were rooted in representational imagery, abstract works embraced non-figurative composition, exploring color, texture, and form for their own expressive potential.
Maki Haku, Onchi Koshiro, and Nana Shiomi are among the artists most associated with abstract in our collection. Browse the full list of artists who explored this subject above.
Hanga currently catalogues 2049 prints tagged with abstract, spanning ukiyo-e, shin-hanga, and sōsaku-hanga traditions where applicable.