Wakai seidai (Young generation)

Artists

Description

Titled by the artist "Wakai seidai", or “Young Generation”, this abstract, non-representational print is vertically oriented and brightly colored; it could be fairly described as “Abstraction in Black, Royal Blue, Coral Red, and Silvery Gray”. The printed forms comprise the following elements: A vertically oriented rectangle printed in silvery gray ink and occupying much of the print’s lower left quadrant A horizontally oriented rectangle printed in black ink and occupying the central portion of the right vertical half of the print An inverted L-shaped element, its corners rounded, its horizontal bar pointing toward the composition’s left edge, printed in coral red pigment and rising through the right vertical half of the print and occupying most of the upper horizontal third of the print An elongated oval printed in royal blue pigment and occupying the print’s lower right corner The horizontally oriented, black rectangle is printed over the coral red inverted-L, so it appears to be in front of the L; this juxtaposition injects a spatial element into the composition, creating the illusion of foreground and background. The black rectangle and blue oval appear to be printed with woodblocks, due to their evenly inked surfaces; by contrast, the gray rectangle and coral red L appear to be printed with paper-blocks, due to their unevenly inked, visually textured surfaces. Written by the artist in pencil along the bottom edge of the paper, the print’s title reading "Wakai seidai" appears in the lower left corner; the title can be translated “Young Generation”. Onchi Kōshirō, the artist, signed this impression and noted the print’s date in pencil along the bottom edge of the paper, immediately to the right of the title; the signature and date read "K. Onzi - 51". The artist impressed his stamp reading "Onzi", in lower-case roman letters, in black ink within the image; the stamp appears along the right edge of the print, approximately one-third of the way up from the bottom.

Dimensions

paper: H. 26.2 x W. 18 cm (10 5/16 x 7 1/16 in.)

Provenance

Onchi Koshiro, Japan (1951-1955), bequest; to his son, Onchi Kunio, Japan (1955-1990). Elizabeth de Sabato Swinton, Massachusetts (1990- 2011), gift; to Harvard Art Museums, 2011. Footnotes: Created in Japan in 1951 by the artist Onchi Koshiro (1891-1955), Onchi Kunio (1920-2001) is son of Onchi Koshiro; Elizabeth de Sabato Swinton (b. 1937)