Catalog: Fine Art: Prints (178)

This is a brilliant example of Haku Maki's Big Red prints, his frequent use of a large red character on a black background.

Haku Maki's Poem Z depicts a Heart by any other name. Maki began to use this theme early in his artistic life. The character was often vertical but this is the only time it was at an angle from the center and seemingly lacking in one stroke, Hence it is an unusual design and intellectually challenging. Its meaning is not immediately evident even to the literati. My curator in Beijing figured it out when she was opening the package and tilted it a bit. The print is large and subtle. This is Poem Z. As such it is the last in the Maki alphabet series of 1967.

Haku Maki did these huge prints from 1970 to 1973. This is Poem Reconciliation done in 1970. It is a big image; it boldly flows across the paper. It is clean not busy, dramatic and elegant. It is from an edition of 50. I have only ever seen this one number of the edition. It has a dazzling yellow sun and sharp red tear that balance the kanji in the center. It is signed and chopped and re-signed in black ink next to the chop. Everything clicks. It is 35in x 35in.

In 1966 Haku Maki produced one of his many abstract series. He did Cell and he did Proportion Here I show Proportion 10 the white strokes appear against a beautiful yellow background . Above the strokes is a white Sun. Wow there are two Maki seals one at the top right and another at the lower left There is a red splash in the center .two images f Proportion 9 are added where are Proportion 1 through 8? 43/50

This is a rare Maki production--a book plate.

In 1970 the famous collector of Japanese art Felix Juda commissioned Haku Maki to produce at least 3 different sets of cards for greeting and thanks. Here we show three. The 4th image may have been one such card or a small print. I have owned it for many years and am still studying it. The ones done for Juda varied in attractiveness. The green one is vintage Maki: good design, good color, and good composition. It is only 5”x 5” but packs a wallop. It shows the kanji for Stone (pronounced To in Japanese) with a small yellow sun added for oomph It is the functional equivalent of a splash. The balance and integrity of the print are clear. The other Juda collection images vary from bizarre to plain. The one with four different images includes a pair of pursed lips, an eye and what? The other shows what I think can be a fishhook. How many other images did Maki do for Juda? Felix Juda collected many works by the famous Onchi Koshiro who of course was Maki’s first and only teacher. The student honored the teacher by doing this series for the teacher’s fan, Juda. I believe all were done in or about 1970. They have the style of that year even as they were not dated. The little blue at the right is also untitled; it may have been done for Juda too It shows a crescent moon and two kanji -- nice balance, nice composition. The last 3 may also be from the Juda Collection but I am not certain. Juda (1909 – 1997) was a senior investment director of Sutro & Co. of Los Angeles , where he was born and died.

In 1971 Haku Maki produced two large prints, one Sun and one Moon. Sun shows a dramatic sun with a red dash all surrounded by a gold field-- Poem 71-100. Poem 72-101 is Moon with a similar design. There is a dark spot in the center. Each print was produced in editions of 156. This pair was offered privately and on eBay by a very insightful seller from Tennessee. After these presumably successful runs Maki did a smaller pair, each with the same title and same design. Both Sun and Moon are surrounded by a fiery corona. The seller’s offerings were rare sightings;the small one from my collection is also quite rare. copyright 2014 daniel tretiak

Big Green shows 4 moving figures.A similar image is in the US in the kas frane but it is 3 moving figures. I think these were not frequent uses for Maki Poem 71-84

Haku Maki Poem 71-25 63/100 This print is the cover image of my book ,The life and works of Haku Maki I have never offered it for sale. the Front edicts Maki’s rendering of I or Me It is a bold big Red the red is embossed on a black ink field this print is 20 ‘ x 30” after being restored in the US by Michael Minckler it is in very good shape there is a crease on the front only visible from the back The print has great red kanji. Placed in a huge matte and framed it will stand out in any home. There have been no copies on sale for a number of years. Sold as is where is. Please ask for any additional information Thanks! Sold with signed certificate of authenticity. SHIPPING: All buyers should pay $100 for insured EMS USPS express shipping. But I will pay $50. RETURNS: Accepted within 7 Days of receipt should the description of the print not be accurate. Since my descriptions are as detailed as possible (see feedback), “buyer remorse” is not an acceptable reason to return the print. If you are uncertain about any information I’ve posted, please ask prior to purchasing. If returned, buyer pays return shipping and refund is for cost of print only. Print must be returned in same condition.

In 1976 Haku Maki did his eight-volume San Mon Ban--a total of 96 different embossed images. These included many items Maki had just used, would use soon and used later. I first show images of two prints like those in San Mon Ban but slightly larger. Then two images of insects in San Mon Ban and then 4 images of insects long hidden in my archives--even to me. These might all be called Maki Lite. The two shown here are Insect 2 Fleas; Insect 3 ants There is also a simple Insect and another Insect 4 ants. All reportedly had editions of 100 but I have never seen them except in archive and I do not have the actual print.

Some time ago one Connie Elrod offered me a set of the Maki zodiac in a format never seen before or since. These are not pulled from cement blocks. Rather they seem to be printed lithographs. One James Imai, a friend of Maki who lives in California, commissioned Maki to do a special zodiac set for the Lunar Year. Imai seems to have sent a card every year to friends. Imai sent them to his friend James Elrod seemingly one every year for 12 years. The designs are strong and dramatic and very creative. Only Elrod’s daughter ever released a set. Maki began the series in 1983 with the Year of the He did it for 12 years and then two more and then he died.

teaching example board wrapped in thin paper last 2 images seller claims this is from Oakland Museum seller claims it is signed by Maki the writing and the date are NOT Maki style Maki did the print but did he sign it? did he sign this "painting" friend doubts Oakland Museum and Maki would not have meshed

Work 73-5 is a funny, lively snowman--or snow child. It is number 28 of an edition of 103 and measures 9.5in W x 17.5in H.

These are three images of a very rarely seen Maki series,the Drop series.If any friend can send me images of Drop 1, 4, or 5, I would appreciate it.

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. This artist has used special reduction print making technique on cement to create an exceptional implied texture to the surface of the print, there is also a strong depth of color too. I am an art teacher myself and i studied printmaking at University of Manitoba. For this reason i recognized its quality. ” Poem 68-3 is a good mid-60s Big Red. It is very abstract, and I still do not know the meaning of the ideographs in the print. It has no kanji in the bottom margin to help me understand what Maki was portraying. Such lack of information is not rare in Maki prints of this period. The left side of the print shows a figure for child; we are not clear about the rest.

Around 1960 Haku Maki probably did the Ox as a woodblock print. He was then a young artist in Tokyo. He may have done some Ox images before James Michener did his now wellknown book, but probably not many: 510 were used in the book The Modern Japanese Print". The prints of Japanese artists included in the book are large-ish, it is not embossed. The print is in excellent shape--it is still tipped onto the original archival backing that was in the book. In 1999 toward the end of his life, Maki did the print again; undoubtedly he did a new block and ran it off. This was an edition of just 75. Here I show the old and the new Ox prints; old is at the left. The appearance of Ox in this book presaged Maki doing 21 prints in Festive Wine by 1969, including an Ox. That one seems almost to have been dancing. 19” x 12”

Poem S B. This small and unpretentious print was a sleeper. Whoever sold it knew not what he had. Indeed neither did I until well after it came here to Beijing. It is a very rare 1968 Maki print. Not 1967 and not 1969. It has the kanji for Rope in the center and that is placed on a subtle but firmly done kanji for STONE - but the kanji is in there ass backwards. The correct rendering is in image 5. Mysteries abound.I have never seen the sub-title SB in a Maki print. I do not know what it means. We have seen FP but not SB. This is a rare image: the numbering 1/50 suggests this was the first image of the run--but it could have been the only one. Did Maki only do one? The paper that was ordered by Maki came from a paper maker he knew who prepared paper for him. (I do not know who he was.) The paper had the distinctive “moon surface” Maki used countless times in his prints. Note this is fairly early Maki: he employs only one splash. In frane 5 I show how Maki would have done the Stone kanji if he were not being cute: straight up (as made in Beijing). Size: 21.5 x 21.5cm.

Haku Maki was a prolific artist of modern Japanese prints in the second half of the 20th century. Many of his prints are known but quite a few remain unseen, even in the Internet age. The Emanation series was large: Maki probably produced more than 100 different prints in the series. At this advanced age, I have only seen about 30 of the Emanation prints—-and have only managed to acquire a few. In Emanation 65B Maki has produced a very colorful print: the red core is set off by the orange strips or slashes at the center of the print. The dramatic white signature in English in the left corner enhances the whole print. This signature may be seen as a kind of splash, which came to be an integral part of many Maki prints. The texture of the print is Maki’s traditional rough style set off by the black background. The main colors—-red, orange and yellow—-are as fresh and vibrant as they were nearly 50 years ago when Maki produced this print. The print has no formal seal. It is the only Maki print I have ever seen without his characteristic seal or chop. The print measures 40cm x 57cm (20.5in x 16in). It was done in the mid-1960s. Its title Emanation 65B does not tell us the year of production, rather that it was done in the middle of the long production period of the Emanation series. In Maki’s early years, the editions were small; this is 29/50. This print has had a good life: it was in the possession of a collector in Sweden who cared for it well—-and then it arrived here. Copyright 2012 by Daniel Tretiak The circle at the right could be the sun or a young child