Soir de printemps - Hiroshige IV - Japan

Hiroshige IV Original Woodcut Print "Spring Evening" 1920-30

Authentic Japanese woodblock print from the Shin-hanga era (c. 1920–1930)

Hiroshige IV (Kiichirō Kikuchi, 1855–1942) after Utagawa Hiroshige (1797–1858)

Mitsugiri-ban (narrow vertical format) original, measuring 17.4 x 38.4 cm.

Signed at the lower right Hiroshige gwa

Sold with its removable grey matting passe-partout

N.B. This impression was submitted for appraisal to the artist’s world specialist Takahashi Shōtei, Marc Kahn (Shotei Gallery). He confirms that it is an authentic period impression made from the carved blocks of the famous signed variant “Hiroshige” (referenced under code M-12 in his catalog raisonné).

Transparency photographs beautifully reveal the cloud-like structure of the fibers in the traditional Washi paper. The black ink and grey pigments have fully permeated and traversed the sheet to the verso under the pressure of the artisanal rubbing (baren), proving a manual, period print and not a modern mechanical impression.

CONDITION:
The verso shows natural scattered foxing (small brown humidity spots due to the paper’s age) as well as traces of old adhesives and mounting points (yellowed hinge residues) along the top and side edges.