Time Present and Time Past: Images of a Forgotten Master: Toyohara Kunichika 1835-1900

English text; Hardcover (with dust jacket); 29.5 x 29.5 cm; 1.7 kg; 175 pages with colour illustrations.; Minor signs of wear on the exterior and interior. The dust jacket show signs of wear, namely some minor scratches and wear signs. Interior in very good condition. Very good condition overall.; The Japanese woodblock-print designer Toyohara Kunichika (1835-1900) was active during the second half of the 19th century when Japan experienced immense political, social and cultural changes following the restoration of imperial rule under the Meiji emperor. Many traditional arts were challenged by this new age and the art of the woodblock print (ukiyo-e), unable to continue as it once had, entered into its final period. In the past, scholars and collectors have frequently dismissed ukiyo-e print designers in this area as insignificant, representing the dernise of the ukiyo-e tradition. However, in recent years the prints of a number of these artists have been re- evaluated. Time present and time past: images of a forgotten master, Toyohara Kunichika (1835- 1900) is the first publication in English to treat in detail the life and work of Kunichika, who is considered today one of the last ukiyo-e masters. Kunichika's designs were drawn from established ukiyo-e genres. Ranging from actor prints (yakusha-e), prints of beautiful women (bijinga) to sumo and historical scenes. However, Kunichika was also a man of his time and this is reflected in his use of colour, composition and subjects. In Time present and time past, author Amy Reigle Newland draws on Japanese and Western- language sources to present an overview of Kunichika's life and his prints. She provides a biographical sketch of Kunichika's life, which is followed by sections on the artists prints of beautiful women and actors. In addition the Japanese scholar Shigeru Oikawa presents an essay on Kunichika's fruitful collaboration with the flamboyant painter Kawanabe Kyōsai (1831-89). The illustration of over 135 prints by Kunichika, an extensive bibliography, appendices containing carvers seals and Kunichika's representative signature forms make Time present and time past an important contribution to our understanding of this little-known Meiji-period print artist.…