Butterfly
Artist
Yoshida Chizuko
(Japanese, 1924 – 2017)
Date1953
PeriodShōwa period (1926–1989)
MediumWoodblock print; ink and color on paper
DimensionsImage: 14 3/4 × 9 3/4 in. (37.5 × 24.8 cm)
Sheet: 16 × 10 3/4 in. (40.6 × 27.3 cm)
Matt: 15 3/8 × 10 in. (39.1 × 25.4 cm)
Frame: 24 × 18 in. (61 × 45.7 cm)
Sheet: 16 × 10 3/4 in. (40.6 × 27.3 cm)
Matt: 15 3/8 × 10 in. (39.1 × 25.4 cm)
Frame: 24 × 18 in. (61 × 45.7 cm)
ClassificationsPrints
Credit LineGift of Mr. and Mrs. Karl A. Bickel, 1961
Object numberSN8058
Yoshida Chizuko’s print depicts the abstracted shapes of butterfly wings spread against a deep blue ground. The asymmetric patterning suggests iridescent surfaces shimmering as the creatures flutter through space. Yoshida was introduced to printmaking through her painting teacher, Kitaoka Fumio. Her shift to this medium was seemingly confirmed by her marriage to Hodaka, the youngest son of the eminent Yoshida family of printmakers. Together, they shaped the Yoshida legacy, steering the household style from realism to abstraction.
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