Japanese Woodblock Print, 1970, 1st Edition, titled, numbered 20/150, dated and signed in the bottom margin, self-published by Joichi Hoshi

SIZE IN INCHES: 5 x 7 inches

JOICHI HOSHI (1913-1979) began his artistic career rather late in life. From 1932 to 1946 he taught elementary school in Taiwan. It was only after the war that Hoshi sporadically began to do prints. He worked as a mimeograph printer, doing bulletins and small jobs to earn a living. Later, Hoshi returned to school, and graduated from Musashino University of Fine Arts in 1956 at the age of forty-two.

His first creations were rather abstract renditions of stars and constellations. This was personally appropriate since "Hoshi" means "star" in Japanese. It was this theme which he explored until 1970, when he made a rather abrupt change in artistic style. The new subject matter, which Hoshi explored until his death in 1979, was detailed studies of trees. They are often shown leafless, against a bare background, and rendered more magnificent with the addition of gold and silver leaf as an undercoat to the work. There seems to be both an inner strength and a symbolic power in the trees Hoshi so carefully created with his woodblocks.

Joichi Hoshi's work can be found in the collections of the Cinncinnati Art Museum; National Museum of Far East Art, Berlin, Germany; Museum of Modern Art, New York; National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo; Arts Council of Great Britian; Haifa Museum, Israel; Rockerfeller Foundation; Chicago Art institute; and the Brooklyn Museum, among many others.

VG, no flaws of note