Background
Onchi Kôshirô (恩地孝四郎 1891-1955) was the preeminent figure of the sôsaku hanga (creative print: 創作版画) movement. Onchi used a varied and sophisticated approach to design, exploring figurative, abstract, and symbolic imagery through traditional and experimental techniques, both Japanese and Western. He was an excellent draftsman in the realistic manner, while his explorations into abstract composition stand as seminal in the development of sôsaku hanga. The printmaker Yamaguchi Gen once said, "Onchi was a vital artist ... he had the inspiration and passion of a great artist. He was the embodiment of modern hanga in Japan and our ambassador to the rest of the world. He was heart and mind....". Perhaps more than anyone else, it was Onchi who embodied the principle of self-carving and self-printing as essential to the sôsaku hanga artist. Even so, he contributed to various projects for which his self-carved images were printed by others to be included in themed print series.
Ueno Zoo, located in the Taitô ward in Tokyo, is Japan's oldest zoo, having opened in 1882. In one of the sad chapters in World War II history, in August 1943, the Tokyo administrator (Shigeo Ôdachi) ordered all the animals killed, fearing that Allied bombing might allow dangerous beasts to escape and terrorize the citizens of Tokyo. The animals were poisoned, strangled, or starved to death. In September 1943, a memorial service was held and a permanent monument was constructed (rebuilt in 1975).
Design
Our printing of Dôbutsuen shoshû (Zoo early autumn: 動物園初秋) is from the original series, first appearing in September 1929.
The design was recarved as a close copy for a new set of prints in 1945 ("Recollections of Tokyo," or "Scenes of lost Tokyo": 東京回顧圖繪 or 東京回顧図会) to memorialize landmarks in Tokyo as they once were before suffering destruction from the Allied bombing and subsequent fires.
For an impression of the recarved 1945 printing, see ONC03.
Our example is early but may not be a self-printing by Onchi, who printed very few of his designs for the series
One Hundred Views of New Tokyo (
Shin Tokyo hyakkei). The signature in the right margin appears to be in another hand. Even so, our example is a fine impression with expressive application of colors.
References: * Helen Merritt & Nanako Yamada, Guide to Modern Japanese Woodblock Prints 1900-1975, Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1992, pp. 267-72; ** (Onchi Kôshirô), Prints of Onchi Koshiro, Keishosha (形象社) Ltd., 1975, no. 194; Helen Merritt, Modern Japanese Woodblock Prints: The Early Years, Honolulu, University of Hawaii Press, 1990, pp. 276-78
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