Japanese Woodblock Print, 1984, 1st Edition, pencil signed, dated and numbered 78/128.

SIZE IN INCHES: dai-oban, 16.5 x 22 inches

COMMENTS: Sekino's most sought after landscape design, he made versions in various sizes, this being the largest.

JUN'ICHIRO SEKINO (1914-1988) was a Japanese printmaker best known for his portraits of kabuki actors, sumo wrestlers, and geishas. These subjects, along with his picturesque views of mountains and forest streams, were completed in a style that merged both Western and Japanese aesthetics, drawing inspiration from the art of Sharaku and Albrecht Durer. Born in 1914 in Aomori City, Japan, Sekino befriended the artist Shiko Munakata, who also lived in Aomori City. The artist went on to study under Koshiro Onchi, the founder of the sosaku-hanga (creative prints) movement, which encouraged self-expression in artists. It was with Onchi in Tokyo where Sekino learned Japanese woodblock printing, Western-style etching, and painting. He won the Teiten Prize for etching in 1936, became a member of the Nihon Hanga Kyokai (Japan Print Association), and began teaching at Kobe University in Japan in 1965. Sekino died in 1988 in Tokyo, Japan. His works are in the collections of the Art Institute of Chicago, The Museum of Modern Art in New York, and the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, among others.

VG minor flaws as shown