Inoue, Yasuji

Yasuji Inoue was born in Tokyo as the son of a proprietor of a dry goods store, possibly attending the printmaking school of Tsukioka Yoshitoshi at a very early ag, but at the age of 14 years old, becaming a student of Kobayashi Kiyochika. Kobayashi is considered the last of the great traditional Ukiyo-e masters of painting and printmaking.

Under the impact of the Meiji revolution with Western achievements and Western art concepts flooding into the country, Kobayashi experimented with Western style elements and integrated them into his own art work – without giving up the unique forms and values of traditional Japanese art, and thereby influencing the style of Yasuji.

Kobayashi and Inoue often made several versions of the same design, one at daylight and one at night for instance, as they incorporated the influence of Western Impressionism and the play of light within their compositions.