Toshimitsu Imai Work 1995, Mixed Media Erotic Drawing on Paper, Hand-Signed and Dated, Framed 68 x 69 cm
Toshimitsu Imai Work 1995, Mixed Media Erotic Drawing on Paper, Hand-Signed and Dated, Framed 68 x 69 cm
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- Prepared and sent from Tokyo within 7–14 days, often sooner, or as arranged
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A guide for this piece: about $387, based on the 10% US charge on the declared value of goods made in Japan.
The final figure is set by US Customs and depends on where the piece was made and the kind of object it is. Many antiques over a century old carry no ordinary duty; most jewellery and leather goods add a single-digit rate.
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- Ornate 6.5 of 10 ·
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Condition report
Excellent
- Giftable
- Mint
- Excellent
- Very Good
- Good
- Honest Wear
- As Found
Informel Returns to the Body
Toshimitsu Imai brought Informel from Paris to Tokyo, then in his last decade turned back to the figure. This 1995 sheet is a frank, close erotic study that answers the shunga tradition with modern line and one ribbon of gold-brown. It is offered as signed and dated by the artist.
Best for: Collectors of post-war Japanese art and modern erotic art
Condition notes
Work described as in good condition; the stained ground is part of the surface. Frame with very small scratches, otherwise clean. Fitted storage box included.
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A late, unguarded work by Toshimitsu Imai, the painter who carried Informel from Paris to Tokyo: an intimate study in ink line, dense hatching and a single ribbon of gold-brown, dated 1995.
The Piece
Imai (1928 to 2002) was born in Kyoto, studied with Umehara Ryuzaburo and Yasui Sotaro, and left for Paris in 1952, where he joined Michel Tapie and Sam Francis in the Informel movement. Back in Japan he helped stage the 1956 exhibition that introduced Informel to Tokyo, and his works entered the Ohara Museum of Art. France made him a Chevalier of the Legion of Honour in 1995, the year of this work.
In his last decade, after a diagnosis of leukaemia, Imai turned from gesture back to the body, declaring the twenty-first century the century of women. This sheet belongs to that turn: a close, frank erotic view in the lineage of shunga, drawn with fine contour lines, bristling ink hatching and one passage of warm gold-brown, on a softly stained ground. The sheet is offered as signed and dated 95 on the face.
Details
- Artist: Toshimitsu Imai (1928 to 2002)
- Title: Work (Sakuhin)
- Year: 1995
- Medium: Mixed media on paper
- Signature: Offered as hand-signed and dated 95, lower right
- Image size: 44 x 45 cm (17.3 x 17.7 in)
- Frame: 68 x 69 cm (26.8 x 27.2 in), black and gold moulding with cream mat
- Accessories: Fitted storage box
Condition
- The work is described as in good condition; the stained ground is part of its surface.
- The frame shows very small scratches and is otherwise clean.
Condition grade A (excellent) on the Japanese scale; see Japanese condition ranks, explained.
Authenticity & Care
Offered as an authentic work by the artist, signed and dated on the face; the attribution is as presented to the Desk, and no independent appraisal is implied. Hang away from direct sun.
Delivery from Japan
The work travels in its frame, wrapped and boxed by hand in Japan, and is shipped discreetly, insured and tracked. The shipping cost is quoted and agreed with you before purchase. Import duties and taxes, where applicable, are payable on arrival. Every sale is final; please ask anything you wish to know before you buy, and see our published policy.
Considered offers are welcome through Send an Offer, and each one is reviewed personally. More awaits in The Private Room and among Japanese artists of note.
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Collectors also search: Toshimitsu Imai original work · Japanese Informel painter · Imai late erotic drawing
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