Seven Masters

Early in the twentieth century, a desire to revive the great tradition of Japanese woodblock prints in the context of Japan's dynamic, modern life gave rise to an art movement known as shin hanga, the "new print." In presenting the remarkable shin hanga collection given by Ellen and Fred Wells to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, this book focuses on seven artists —noteworthy representatives of the movement who played a significant role in its development. Richly illustrated with more than 300 images, the volume features the spectacular beauty portraits of Hashiguchi Goyō (1880-1921), Itō Shinsui (1898-1972), Yamakawa Shūhō (1898-1944), and Torii Kotondo (1900-1976); the striking actors of Yamamura Kōka (Toyonari; 1886-1942) and Natori Shunsen (1886-1960); and the evocative landscapes of Kawase Hasui (1883-1957).

Essays by Andreas Marks, Chiaki Ajioka, Ishida Yasuhiro, Yuiko Kimura-Tilford, Amy Reigle Newland, Charles Walbridge, and Yano Haruyo offer extended biographies of each artist, insights into the enticing world of shin hanga, and a deeper understanding of these artists as painters and print designers. The artists' exhibition histories are concisely summarized in a series of tables that are accompanied by rarely illustrated paintings.