Written by: Jacqueline Yu
Kawase Hasui was born in Shiba, Tokyo on May 18, 1883 as Kawase Bunjiro. His mother, who had deep connections to the artistic world in Japan, encouraged Kawase to pursue his artistic and literary tendencies. His family owned a small braid business and frequently visited the theaters of Tokyo which greatly influenced his work later. As a child, Kawase was often sick, and he had poor eyesight. His parents sent him to live with his aunt in Shiobara, a town north of Tokyo known for its hot springs, in order to recuperate as the air was fresher. There were lots of scenic views in Shiobara which inspired Kawase’s first and later prints as well as his paintings during the war years. Kawase began his traditional training with painter Aoyagi Bokusen where he learned how to sketch from nature. Later, he studied brush painting with Araki Kanyu and copied woodblock prints of masters. Kawase’s father required him to enter the family business, but, due to Kawase’s lackluster talents in business, the business began to flounder. As a result, in 1908, the business was turned over to his sister’s husband and Kawase was allowed to pursue a career in art. Kawase continued his training with western-style artist Okada Saburosuke, a prominent member of the Hakubakai, the white horse society. Saburosuke inspired Kawase to focus on landscapes. While studying under Kaburagi Kiyokata, who gave Kawase the artist name of “Hasui,” Kawase had his big break when Watanabe Shozaburo, a famous print seller, discovered Kawase through an exhibition of Kaburagi Kiyokata’s and his students’ work. They struck a deal and Kawase became Watanabe’s designated landscape artist. His art is indicative of the Shin Hanga art movement which was characterized by Western influences in traditional Japanese woodblock prints. Kawase’s most exceptional and original work is commonly considered those at the beginning of his career. Kawase incorporated western lighting and shading into Japanese scenes which contributes to the atmospheric, moody, and tranquil aesthetic of his pieces. He would often experiment with the same set of blocks to produce a series of prints with different lighting and colors. He rarely featured more than two people in his work and these lone figures have been interpreted as a representation of deep contemplation of nature’s beauty or a reflection of Kawase’s loneliness because he was childless. His people are always dignified, working or thinking, and almost always viewed from the back. Kawase travelled all along Japan to find inspiration for his prints and his work captures life during the Taisho (1912-1926) and early Showa (1926-1957) periods. Kawase was quite poor despite his prominence as a printmaker under Watanabe. Printmaking is a multistep process, and the artist only receives payment for their sketches as carving, printing, and publishing involve other workers. Kawase is remembered to have been involved with every step of the process. Kawase sold his watercolors which often inspired his prints for additional income. In 1923, disaster struck when the Kanto Earthquake destroyed Kawase’s home and sketchbooks that contained ideas for future prints. Watanabe gave Kawase enough money to travel for 100 days in order to rebuild his arsenal of sketches; however, Kawase was forced to be even more frugal after his travel in order to rebuild his home. Kawase has been described as hard-working, honest, punctual, conscientious, straight-forward, kind, faithful, and humorous. In 1953, Hasui was chosen to be honored by the Japanese government’s Committee for the Preservation of Intangible Cultural Treasures. Hasui was commissioned to create a woodblock print, “Snow at Zozoji Temple,” which was then deemed an intangible cultural treasure. On November 27th, 1957, Hasui died. Throughout his career, Kawase had made more than 600 prints. His last print, “Hall of the Golden Hue, Hiraizumi,” was distributed by Watanabe at his funeral. Hasui, like many other asian artists, is not particularly well known outside of artistic circles. His work can be found in any exhibition of Japanese prints in the 20th century, yet, his relative obscurity among the general public highlights the lack of appreciation for art, especially asian art, in the world today.
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ContributorsJACQUELINE YU is the co-founder of the MLWGS art history online magazine. She is an incredible artist and devotes much of her time to both participating in, experiencing, and appreciating art. Archives
April 2019
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