Shin-hanga Woodblock Prints: Hasui, Yoshida and the Seals That Date Them

In the 1910s, as photography and lithography pushed the traditional woodblock print aside, a Tokyo publisher set out to revive it. Watanabe Shōzaburō brought together painters, carvers and printers to make new prints in the old collaborative way, with softer light, Western perspective and subtle colour that appealed to collectors in Japan and abroad. The movement became known as shin-hanga, new prints, and its landscapes by Kawase Hasui and Hiroshi Yoshida are among the best-loved Japanese images of the century.

How shin-hanga was made

Like the ukiyo-e prints of the Edo period, a shin-hanga print was a team effort. The artist made the design, a carver cut a separate cherry-wood block for each colour, and a printer laid down the pigments by hand with a baren, often building colour through dozens of impressions. The publisher organised and financed the work and marked the finished sheets with a seal. The difference from older prints lies in the look: atmospheric effects of rain, dusk and snow, moonlight and reflections, closer to watercolour than to bold Edo outlines.

Kawase Hasui and Watanabe's seals

Kawase Hasui (1883–1957) was the movement's great landscape artist, recording temples, villages, harbours and snow scenes across Japan in hundreds of designs, most published by Watanabe. His blues and evening skies are instantly recognisable.

The Great Kantō earthquake of 1923 destroyed Watanabe's premises with many blocks and prints, so impressions from before the earthquake are scarce and sought after. Watanabe used a sequence of publisher's seals over the decades, and specialists date an impression by the seal in the lower margin together with the paper and colour. Many popular designs were printed again after the artist's death, and those later impressions are worth considerably less than lifetime ones.

Hiroshi Yoshida and the jizuri seal

Hiroshi Yoshida (1876–1950), a painter who had travelled widely in America and Europe, worked briefly with Watanabe before setting up his own studio in 1925. From then on he published his own prints, employing carvers and printers he supervised closely, and often printing many colour variations of one design, such as a scene at morning, midday and evening.

Prints made under his supervision usually carry a small seal in the margin reading jizuri (自摺), meaning self-printed, along with his pencil signature. Impressions printed after his death by the family studio generally lack the jizuri seal. For collectors this seal is the first thing to look for.

Other names to know

• Itō Shinsui: elegant portraits of women in the bijinga tradition.
• Ohara Koson: birds and flowers, much admired in the West.
• Tsuchiya Kōitsu: landscapes of light and night scenes.
• Yoshida Tōshi: Hiroshi's son, who continued and then moved beyond his father's style.

Condition: what to check

• Colour: some pigments, especially certain blues and reds, fade with light. Compare with well-preserved impressions of the same design.
• Toning and stains: paper darkened by old mats or light, foxing and water stains lower value.
• Margins: full margins with seals intact are preferred; trimmed sheets lose information and value.
• Repairs and backing: look for tape residue, thinning, wormholes and later backing paper.
• Impression: early impressions show crisp lines and subtle gradations; later ones can look flatter.

How we present each print

Every print we offer is examined in Japan, with the seals, signature, margins and condition photographed front and back, and ships flat between rigid boards, insured and tracked. Each carries our authenticity guarantee: should an independent written opinion find a piece not genuine within 30 days, we refund the price and the cost of its return.

Questions collectors ask

Are posthumous impressions worth collecting?

They are honest prints from the original blocks and an affordable way to enjoy a design, but lifetime impressions are rarer and command much higher prices. A description should always say which it is.

How should I frame a woodblock print?

Use acid-free mounts, hinge the sheet with Japanese tissue and wheat-starch paste, and glaze with UV-filtering glass. Keep it out of direct sun.

Can you find a particular Hasui or Yoshida design?

Yes. Our Hunting Salon™ searches for specific designs and impressions, and the curator desk replies within one to three business days.

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