Charcoal-Making at Yachi in Late Autumn
Artist
Ito Takashi
(Japanese, 1894 - 1983)
Publisher
Shozaburo Watanabe
(Japanese, 1885 - 1962)
CultureJapanese
Date1950
MediumColor woodblock print on laid paper
DimensionsOverall, Image: 9 5/8 x 14 7/16 in. (24.4 x 36.7 cm)
Overall: 10 3/8 x 15 1/2 in. (26.4 x 39.4 cm)
Overall: 10 3/8 x 15 1/2 in. (26.4 x 39.4 cm)
Credit LineGift of Momotaro Yanagida, Mayor of Moji, Japan, sister city of Norfolk
Object number61.72.4
On View
Not on viewLabel TextItō Takashi Japanese, 1894–1982 Charcoal-Making at Yachi in Late Autumn, 1950 Color woodblock print on laid paper In the mountains of northern Japan, the fall colors of the forest blaze in the fading daylight as smoke rises from a low, earthen mound. The fires slowly burn bundles of wood, a centuries-old method of creating charcoal. Japan relied on charcoal as an essential fuel source for heating and cooking until the 1950s, when industrialization brought electricity and propane to rural areas throughout the country. Itō Takashi’s print thus celebrates both the landscape’s poetic beauty and a traditional village occupation that was slowly fading away. Gift of Momotarō Yanagida, Mayor of Moji, Japan, sister city of Norfolk 61.72.4 Exhibition History"Gifts from Japan: Landscape Woodblocks in the Shin-Hanga Style," Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, VA, March 24 - July 26, 2015.
