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Artist Maki Haku (Japanese, 1924 – 2000)

Date1965

PeriodShōwa period (1926–1989)

CultureJapanese

MediumWoodblock print; ink and color on paper

ClassificationPrints

Credit LineGift of Christine and Paul Meehan, 2021

Object number2021.58.2

Maki Haku was a master of composition, texture, and empty space. He created his elegantly balanced designs based on stylized Chinese characters (Jp. kanji) or archaic oracle script, and developed an idiosyncratic technique to achieve the pronounced relief of his prints. He first carved the design into a plywood sheet, and then cast the plywood in cement, such that the design is produced as a raised pattern. The impressions were made by layering two sheets of wet paper over the hardened cement. Finally, color was applied by stencil. Maki had made prints as a child, but it wasn’t until after the war, while working as an elementary school teacher, than he began making prints in earnest. He joined the circle of Onchi Kōhirō(1891–955), a pioneer of modernist printmaking and mentor to many young artists.

On View

Not on view

DimensionsSheet (Visible): 22 1/16 × 15 3/8 in. (56 × 39 cm)
Frame: 28 9/16 × 21 7/8 × 1 7/16 in. (72.5 × 55.5 × 3.7 cm)