Takehiko Hironaga (b. 1935)
A Store in Kakunodate (2) - From the Akita / Kakunodate Series
Japanese title: Kakunodate no Shouho 角館の商舗 (2)
Size: 24 x 18.5 inches.
Date: 1982.
Edition: 23/50.
Condition: Excellent. Right margin has toning.
Hironaga traveled throughout Japan to make prints of its traditional buildings. The influence of his friend Kiyoshi Saito is apparent in this work.

An unframed woodblock print by the hand of one of the masters of 20th century Japanese printmaking, 12 1/2" by 17 3/4" inside the existing mat (the full sheet 16 5/8" by 21 1/2", as permanently laid down on a board), signed in pencil by the artist at lower right and bearing his red seal. The image is of a major traditional multi-tiered temple, perhaps the famous one at Himeji on Honshu, shown in winter with snow on the nearby pines. Sekino was creating art before age 20...

Artist’s proof of two sumo wrestlers titled KOTOZAKURA by Clifton Karhu. The print is perfectly rectangular - any distortions of the paper are from photography. An artist's proof is a print that is set aside as a reference by the artist and usually marked AP rather than being numbered and included in the main edition. Kotozakura Masakatsu (1940 – 2007) was a Japanese professional sumo wrestler who made his professional debut in 1959, reaching the top division in 1963...

Original Japanese woodblock print by Utagawa Hiroshige (Hiroshige II), from his series "One Hundred Famous Views in the Various Provinces (Shokoku meisho hyakkei)", circa 1860. This vertical oban is signed Hiroshige ga. Published by Uoya Eikishi. Beautiful color and condition. Never framed. A rare print from a series partially based on Hiroshige I's series (Famous Views of the 60-odd Provinces). This particular view by his protege is not based on a Hiroshige I work.

Haku Maki was a Japanese print master of the late 20th century. His prints at the time this one was published were strong on the use of kanji and abstract designs, as shown here. In this case; the design is abstract, it shows archaic images which we are trying to understand. The print is large, well designed and carried off. The seller Ashley Brasca of Winnipeg Canada wrote to me about this print: “It is special because of the texture and physical quality achieved on the surface...

The main woodcut shows the enchantress Circe in front of Odysseus and one of his crew members changed into a swine. Circe holds a beaker, which stands for her vast knowledge of potions and herbs.
The woodcut below depicts Samson with remains of the Philistine temple. Further vignettes show the descendants of Eli, and depictions of four Jewish judges...

Color woodblock on paper, 13 1/4" by 9 1/4" (21" by 17" as framed), pencil signed by the artist at lower right, numbered 143/200 at lower left and titled there "Prayer". Amen's works are most commonly prints, as he was considered a master print maker in woodblock, etching, lithography and silk screen, but he also executed oils and acrylics, in the course of a long career...

Ca. 1950s

Original Japanese black lacquer and brocade frame. Postcard size print with borders likely trimmed. Print in good condition, but not examined outside frame.

Print: 3 ¾ in. x 5 ½ in., Frame: 9 in. x 7 ¼ in.

Antique Japanese woodblock print by Hasui Kawase (1883-1957) entitled Chionin Temple, Kyoto. Looking out through the darkened interior towards bright sky and pines. In the background, heavy temple doors frame a woman and child.

The artist, Hasui Kawase is considered one of the major landscape artists of Japan. He was born the son of a silk merchant and studied both Japanese and Western style painting. He showed at the Tatsumi Exhibition of Painting at the age of 19...

A fine 20th C. print variously titled Red Fuji; Fine Wind; Clear Weather, and Gaifû kaisei, originally create by Japanese wood block artist Katsushika Hokusai, c. 1830 as part of the monumental 36 Views of Mount Fuji. Although this print has not been examined outside of its frame, it appears to be in superb condition with bright vivid color...

An unusual playful piece depicting an owl by one of the most important sōsaku-hang printmakers in the 20th century, Akiyama Iwao 秋山巌 (1921-2014). Best known for his prints, Akiyama Iwao produced paintings even later in his career, as well as occasionally painted on ceramics. Sake cup is sealed by the potter, but seal is obscured by glaze, and Akiyama’s signature and remains unread...

A beautiful Taiwanese woodblock of the famous cave paintings measuring 22” x 35” framed amd matted

The page deals with the creation of nature and of Adam on the sixth day of Genesis.
Important woodcut with God the Father creating Adam from a lump of clay...

Wood engraving on paper, unframed and in a shrink wrap sleeve, 14" by 9 1/4" inside the present mat, signed in the print at lower left and titled at bottom "Approach of the British Pirate Alabama", by the famed American artist WINSLOW HOMER (1836-1910). The well-known image was published on April 25, 1863...

Artist’s proof of the print EELS from the “Folk Sayings” series by Clifton Karhu. An artist's proof is a print that is set aside as a reference by the artist and usually marked AP rather than being numbered and included in the main edition. Clifton Karhu (1927 – 007) was an American artist who settled in Japan after serving there in the U.S. military during WW II and returning as a missionary...

Torii Kiyonaga, Japanese, 1752-1815, "Two Women with Young Servant". This woodblock print by Torii Kiyonaga measures 9 1/2 x 7 inches. It is signed, sealed and titled within the image. Kiyonaga was one of the great masters of the full-color print depicting courtesans, beautiful women and Kabuki actors. Head of the Torii school, he excelled with "bijin-ga" (beautiful women) prints and these were considered to be his best works.

Woodcut with the martyrdom of Apollinaris outside the city walls of Ravenna.
Taken from a book with legends of the saints in Latin. Apollinaris was considered the founder and bishop of the Christian community of Ravenna. According to the legend, Apollinaris was apprehended at the gates of the city and brutally beaten to death.
Believers venerate Apollinaris a helper against epilepsy.
The text shows different font sizes as well as red text sections and initials. The top of t...

Kyoto Storefront, undated, purchased from a Kyoto gallery in 1978

Signed and titled in pencil on lower margin, very good color and condition

Paper size: 10 x 13 in.; image size: 7 ¾ x 10 ½ in.

Scene from a Noh play from the series “100 Noh Plays” published 1922-1926

Signed Kogyo with artists’s seal on L.L., fan-shaped publisher’s seal, very good impression and color, small soil mark on upper left corner, wrinkle from the printing across upper right corner, corner creased, light soiling, large red collector’s seal on verso.

Oban tate-e: 10 x 14 ¾ in.

Village scene, possibly Nara, issued ca. 1950s, non-limited edition.

Pencil signed in the image beneath red artist’s seal, very good impression and color, untrimmed, full margins, light toning in margins, white tape residue on back of margins, printer’s seal on back of margin.

Overall size: 11 ½ x 17 in., image size: 10 ½ x 15 1/8 in.

¡°This print was prepared in the mid-thirties, a few rare proofs exist¡­¡­This imposing portrait is the equivalent in technical complexity of Les Perles and L¡¯Etoile de Gobi¡­¡­The Mandarin¡¯s sleeve is printed in three shades of gray with urushi stripes, and silver metallics. Note the mica of the lenses, made by using crushed pink pearls¡­¡­¡± Richard Miles, The Prints of Paul Jacoulet. P.113, Robert G. Sawers Publishing, 1982. ¡°Le Mandarin Aux Lunettes¡± was publis...

An unmounted Japanese three-part woodblock print titled, Townspeople Watching the Noh play Okina in Edo Castle, 1889. The artist is Toyoharu or Yoshu Chikanobu (1838-1912). The work depicts the staging of the Noh play with a fairly boisterous looking crowd of townspeople and a group of Samurai and notables seated quietly. The height of the prints is 13 7/8 inches (35.3 cm) and they vary between 9 ¼ to 9 93/4 inches 23.5 to 24.7 cm) wide.

Condition: some soiling and all the corners are worn...

This is a work by highly regarded American artist THOMAS WILLOUGHBY NASON (1889-1971), titled in pencil "Rockport" at lower left and signed at lower right "TWNason (M.W.N.)". This would appear to be a posthumous signature by a relative after the artist's death. This example measures 4 1/4" by 6 1/4" inside the mat and 11 1/4" by 13 1/4" framed. The print appears to be in generally good condition with some scattered foxing, especially in the margin area. The burl wood framing is simple and attra...

A woodblock print with vivid PRINTED blue, red, green and yellow colors (NOT hand coloring), the subject a street scene in a German town, with extensive pencil writing in the bottom margin and what appears to be the date 1909. I showed images of this old style Germanic handwriting to Galerie Bassenge in Berlin and they were also unable to determine an artist name, but the writing is "Linolschnitt Orig. Handdruck...Alt Bielefeld…Bachstrasse...1909" (linocut, hand printed, Alt Bielefeld, etc.)....

SALVADOR DALI

"INFERNO 24"

from the series "The Divine Comedy"

ORIGINAL INDIVIDUAL MAT-SLEEVE COLOR WOOD ENGRAVING ON BFK RIVES PAPER with 'Les heures claires" Watermark

Hand-Signed in Red Pencil by Salvador Dali

Numbered 150/150, in Red Pencil, by the author

In accordance with The Official Catalog of Graphic Works of SALVADOR DALI, by Albert Field, page 189

Valued at $6,500, in accordance with the "Print Price Guide to the Graphic Wor...

Hendrik Glintenkamp 1887-1946 American This is a finely detailed wood engraving by American artist Hendrik Glintenkamp (1887-1946) The title is: Manhattan construction, Radio City, N.Y. It was created and printed in 1932, and is numbered 25/100. Hand signed in pencil lower border and also on the back of the sheet. Very fine condition.

Isaac Friedlander Open Isaac Friedlander configuration options 1890-1968 Latvian-American This is an original pencil signed wood engraving by Latvian American artist Isac Friedlander. This image is titled Self Portrait, New York and dated 1935. The image measures 10 3/4X8 3/4 inches. Isac Friedlander (1890-1968) was born in Latvia. In 1912 he went to Italy where he met and worked with Russian artist Maxim Gorky. During this period he also received his only art training, studying etching, ...

Scene from a Noh play, published 1922-1926

Signed Kogyo on lower left, fan-shaped publisher’s seal, fine impression and color, visible woodgrain, lacquer printing on lower stage platform, light mica dust on edge of mountains, very slight wrinkles to lower corners, overall good condition

Oban tate-e: 10 x 14 ¾ in.

Etching of Anna Pavlova and a Saltimbanque. Ernst Oppler (19 September 1867 – 1 March 1929)[1] was a German Impressionist painter and etcher born in Hanover. Oppler, was a founding member of the Berlin Secessionist. He was the son of Edwin Oppler (1831-1880), a prominent German-Jewish architect. Ernst Oppler's brothers were the sculptor Alexander Oppler (1869-1937), the physician Berthold Oppler [de] (1871-1943), and the attorney and notary Siegmund Oppler (1873-1942). He studied...

Hasui Kawase, oban tate-e, ¡°Yuimachi, Suruga Province¡±, dated Showa 9 (1934), published by Watanabe, slightly toned, fine impression and color.

Important woodcut of God the Father creating Eve from Adam’s rib.
According to Genesis, God the Father created Adam and placed him in the Garden of Eden. There he was given dominion over the animals, which he named. But he himself had no mate. God made Adam fall into a deep sleep and created his mate Eve from one of his ribs.
The recto with two blocks of Latin text.
Page from Hartmann Schedel's Liber Chronicarum, more commonly known as the Nuremberg Chronicle. The Latin ve...

Albert Abramovitz, Latvian/American, 1879-1963, "Construction Work, Moscow". A remarkable original linocut, image size 8 3/4 x 11 1/2 inches, c. 1930s, pencil signed and titled. Albert Abramovitz was known for his dramatic images with sharp social commentary, many portraying the hardships of daily life for working class people in both America and Russia. Born in Latvia, Abramovitz studied at the Imperial Art School in Odessa and the Grande Chaumiere in Paris. While in Paris he was a member and j...

A PAIR of woodcut prints on very delicate thin paper, one featuring a decorative flower vase and perhaps a tomato or pomegranate, the other a dragon design ceramic with that same tomato/pomegranate, identically framed, each measuring 9 1/4" by 13" (17" by 20" framed). Each includes the artist stamp of Julie Brix. One retains its old Gumps department store sticker. Gumps is a prestigious luxury home furnishings/home decor department store that traces its origin to 1861 San Francisco; judging f...

SALVADOR DALI

"PARADISE 24"

from the series "The Divine Comedy"

ORIGINAL INDIVIDUAL MAT-SLEEVE COLOR WOOD ENGRAVING ON BFK RIVES PAPER with 'Les heures claires" Watermark

Hand-Signed in Blue Pencil by Salvador Dali

Numbered 150/150, in Blue Pencil, by the author

In accordance with The Official Catalog of Graphic Works of SALVADOR DALI, by Albert Field, page 189

Valued at $6,500, in accordance with the "Print Price Guide to the Graphic Wo...

Village scene with green mountain, issued ca. 1950s, non-limited edition.

Pencil signed in the image beneath red artist’s seal, very good impression and color, untrimmed, full margins, light toning in margins, white tape residue on back of margins, printer’s seal on back of margin.

Overall size: 11 ¼ x 17 in., image size: 9 ¾ x 14 ¼ in.

Scene from a Noh play from the series “100 Noh Plays” published 1922-1926

Signed Kogyo with publisher’s seal on lower left, very good impression and color, light foxing on verso, large red collector’s seal on verso

Oban tate-e: 10 x 14 ¾ in.