Nowake Fuji 野分什富士 - Limited Edition 52/86 & Hand-Signed - Kan Kawada 川田幹 (1927-1999) - Japan

One of the most illustrious Japanese woodblock artists is Kan Kawada. He is famous for his street scenes and the use of red and black. His red skies are his special trademark and give quite an eery feeling to his prints. Although he has an extensive collection of prints, very few find their way to the open market. The owners of Kawada prints tend to hold on to them for eternity.

Of course a print of Mount Fuji had to be part of his oeuvre. But unlike other artists, it remained just this one print. As with most of his prints, he focused on the use of red and black. But to give it a special touch, Mr. Kawada used a gold paint with glitter to highlight the high grass in the forefront. This glitter plays with the light that falls on the print. Regretfully, I could not reproduce this in the pictures.

The print is in very good condition. There are some very slight foxing stains on the outer edges of the print. None on or close to the print itself. And the outer left and right side show very slight creases. All these will be covered by the passe-partout.

Born in Tokyo in 1927, Kan Kawada began his studies in printmaking under the tutelage of Keisuke Serizawa. Kawada graduated from Ochanomizu Bunka Gakuin Art Institute in Tokyo. He participated in the Sankikai Art exhibition from 1953 through 1959. In 1992, Kawada received the Grand Prize at the Nitten Art Exhibition. He exhibited his Japanese Street woodblock prints in both group and solo shows in Japan and abroad.