A sweet, small woodblock of a bluebird sitting on a branch of bright orange autumn leaves.
The Woodblock Print
A yatsugiri-ban woodblock (small, measuring roughly 3.75″x5″) in excellent condition, this woodblock has great color, paper in excellent shape, a clean verso and intact margins without edge wear.
About the Artist
Itō Sōzan lived between 1884 and 1926 and was associated with the Shin Hanga print movement. Little known, his catalog of prints have been overshadowed by the more famous Ohara Koson as he also seems to have been replaced by Koson for his publisher Watanabe. Ito Sozan was a noted designer of kacho-ga (flowers and birds), and fulfilled that role with the newly formed Watanabe publishing house until his death/replacement (the exact story reasoning is unknown).
