Woman Looking at a Mirror, July 1916
Itō Shinsui; Publisher: Watanabe Shōzaburōexpand_more
Woodblock print; ink and color on paperexpand_more
Gift of Ellen and Fred Wellsexpand_more 2002.161.205
Not on Viewexpand_more
This print was Itō Shinsui’s first collaboration with the publisher Watanabe Shōzaburō (1885–1962). Intended for the foreign market, it originally had an English title, The Scarlet Lady, although this hardly does justice to the artist’s skillful suggestion of the woman’s introspection by focusing her gaze on a mirror outside the frame.
Many years later, Shinsui’s contemporary, the scholar Fujikake Shizuya (1881–1958), lauded this print for its “outstanding composition,” “superior color distribution,” “beauty of color tone,” “lines that convey volume,” and the artist’s “care not to bring the painting line into prints.” Notable, too, are deliberate rubbing lines in the background, executed with the corner of a rubbing pad (baren) to create textural tension against the large flat blocks of red and black.
Details
- Title
- Woman Looking at a Mirror
- Artist Life
- 1898 - 1972
- Role
- Artist
- Accession Number
- 2002.161.205
- Curator Approved
This record is from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator, so may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.
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