Pillar prints, or ko-tanzaku, are a format that creates beautiful challenges for the artist and their compositions. In this print Yoshimoto Gesso utilizes the 3″ wide by 13″ tall format to capture a scene of two men on a hillside, enjoying the view while smoking a pipe. This print is Hasegawa Catalog Number 1578 from the series “Japanese Scenes on Tanzaku“.
The Composition
Vertical, narrow prints are a by-product of traditional Japanese architecture, which offered very few solid wall surfaces. Many times, the only solid surface available for the hanging of pictures, were the structural posts which held up the roof. “Pillar prints” became a genre unto themselves and were referred to in Japanese as hashira-e or tanzaku.
The Woodblock Print
This print is in fine condition with strong color, no fading, minor discoloration on the upper and left edge. The print is minus its margins, but that is typical for prints within this series. The piece has tipping residue on the top of the verso, along with the publisher stamp.
The Artist
Yoshimoto Gesso is known for a large number of landscape and kacho-e (images of birds and flowers) designs published by Hasegawa and Nishinomiya, but little else is biographically known about him. These designs were very well crafted with artistic compositions made presumably for the export/foreign market. His work is very painterly, leading some to believe that he was a trained painter whose works were commissioned, and then transformed into woodblocks by the professional carvers and printers at Hasegawa and Nishinomiya, but that is speculation.
