Japan in Transition: Drawings of the Meiji and 50 similar items

Birkitts Books presents ... Japan in Transition: Drawings of the Meiji Period Author: Graham Johnson Publisher: Milne Henderson Release Date: 1983 Seller Category: -- Qty Available: 1 Condition: Used: Very Good Sku: 240910019 Notes: Minor shelf wear, binding tight, pages clean and unmarked. From the Introduction: "The one hundred and forty-seven works of art which comprise the present exhibition were preparatory drawings by an artist of the Yoshitoshi School for illustrated novels of the Meiji period. Although comparatively few original drawings and sketches have made their way out of Japan, it is clear from the known surviving material that drawings were made for several purposes. Artists' sketchbooks dating back from many hundreds of years display the preoccupation with making studies of landscapes, birds and flowers. But this material rarely surfaces, because Japanese have never shared the Western preoccupation with drawings as a special medium. What the original artist's attitude was towards his own preparation for major works is largely unknown, since there was little pressure to write about techniques either on the artist, himself, or on those surrounding him. Sketchbooks were the most likely to survive, since the work was kept in a bound format, but loose sketches, drawings for woodblock prints, or for the printed novel were often destroyed almost from the studio floor..." Don't forget to check out other great deals in our Store!!