Visions of Japan

After the Second World War, his prints were highly desired and sought-after collectible items among the American occupying forces in Japan. Hasui's work has always been greatly appreciated in Japan: He was acknowledged as a 'Living National Treasure' in 1956. Following on the success of the catalogue raisonné – Kawase Hasui: The Complete Woodblock Prints – published by Hotei Publishing in 2003, Visions of Japan: Kawase Hasui’s Masterpieces brings together in a single volume one hundred of the artist’s most celebrated prints. Fully illustrated, this publication includes annotated descriptions for each work, as well as two essays on Hasui’s life and work by Dr. Kendall H. Brown. Kawase Hasui (1883-1957) is considered the foremost Japanese landscape print artist of the 20th century, and he is most closely associated with the pioneering Shin-hanga ('New Prints') publisher Watanabe Shōzaburō (1885-1962). Hasui’s work became hugely popular, not only in his native Japan but also in the West, especially in the United States. His valuable contribution to the woodblock print medium was acknowledged in 1956, a year before his death, when he was honoured with the distinction of ‘Living National Treasure’.