"Lucky Guys," a masterpiece woodblock print by Iwao Akiyama, depicts a group of owls that bring good fortune. The owls' unique personalities are accented with colorful accents scattered across their black silhouettes. Despite their stern expressions, they are somehow charming. This masterpiece boasts Akiyama's signature powerful woodblock print and a playful design. This popular piece from Akiyama's owl series combines healing, humor, and good luck. The appeal of this work lies in the owls' comical, playful expressions and colorful, spotted decorations. The contrast between their stern expressions and their sense of "luckiness" demonstrates Akiyama's unique sensibility. Artist: Iwao Akiyama (1921-2014) 秋山 巌 Titled: 'Lucky Guys' Technique: Woodblock print Edition 32/160, in 2013 Pencil hand signed, dated and numbered with red Artist’s seal. Beautiful handmade slightly wavy Japanese Washi paper with small pieces of tree bark, as usual with Akiyama prints. Condition: Very good, light defects in the margin please ref. pictures. Dimensions: Paper size 250 x 540 mm About the artist: Iwao AKIYAMA(1921 Oita - 2014 Chiba), JAPAN. Akiyama was a very famous and unique Japanese woodblock printmaker and artist known for distinctive prints of owls, cats, and other animals in the style of naive or folk art. Akiyama's prints are primarily made in black ink, and early ones contained a single red dot within the image, although later works sometimes feature more colors. In his prints, Akiyama limited himself to few subjects: animals, nude female figures, Akiyama's work often incorporated verses of haiku and other text by Japanese poets like Ryōkan Taigu, Kobayashi Issa, and Zen monk Santōka Taneda, as well as from his own original poetry. Collections: Brirish Museum; Tikotin Museum of Japanese Art, Israel; National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne etc.. Shipment with tracking, we do combine shipments for woodblock prints, please have a look at our weekly selection of Japanese fine art! Thank you!