Collecting Modern Japanese Prints is an authoritative guide to the contemporary Japanese art form of printmaking Authors, Mary and Norman Tolman have been involved with modern Japanese prints on every level for the past thirty years. They number among their close friends a great many contemporary Japanese printmakers. This Japanese print book contains several bodies of information. An introductory essay puts Japanese prints into historical perspective and gives a brief outline of techniques. All of the prints are in full color, in as large a format as possible, so that the art lover can savor the details of each work.

A selection of exemplary 20th-century Japanese woodblock prints from the collection of the Carnegie Museum of Art This volume presents more than 1,000 exemplary twentieth-century Japanese woodblock prints, from the collection of Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh. Taken together, the collection reflects the stylistic movements, aesthetic directions and historic changes of the past century, with particular emphasis on two significant movements: sosakuhanga (creative prints), represented by in-depth selections by Hiratsuka Un'ichi, Onchi Koshiro and Munakata Shiko; and shin-hanga (new prints), with works by Kawase Hasui and Hashiguchi Goyo. Carnegie Museum of Art also possesses several complete series of prints produced in such limited numbers that they are rarely seen today, including One Hundred Views of New Tokyo created between 1929 and 1932. In addition, an essay on the history and significance of the collection provides a brief introduction to Japanese printmaking in the twentieth century, making this illustrated guide an invaluable reference for researchers, curators, collectors and general enthusiasts of Japanese art.

Japan in the throes of modernity, depicted through an ancient medium In the early 20th century, Japan flourished under modernity's ascent: employment opportunities increased, conditions for women improved and optimism abounded. At the same time, many found themselves displaced and disoriented, longing for the former days of established order. Japan Moderndocuments the turbulence of this period as expressed through printmaking. Japanese artists gravitated toward the medium, drawn to its timelessness. Accordingly, many blended traditional and modern elements, implementing ancient woodcarving techniques to render street scenes with high-rise buildings, cars, railroads, factories and Japanese women with chin-length bobs dancing and drinking cocktails. Many, however, portrayed more traditional subjects such as idealized portraits of women and romantic landscapes. The prints featured in the volume are sourced from the Elise Wessels collection in the Netherlands, which is considered the most comprehensive archive of early 20th-century Japanese prints outside of Japan. This brand-new edition features a new cover treatment and a new foreword by Marije Jansen, the curator of Japanese prints at the Rijksmuseum.

"[An] impressive volume, with a valuable amount of information not otherwise available in one source." --Choice Companion volume to Merritt's Modern Japanese Woodblock Prints. This volume is a reference work that is both comprehensive and rigorously chronological.