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Okiie Hashimoto 橋本興家 (1899-1993) Japanese woodblock print artist associated with the sosaku-hanga "creative prints" movement. Noted for his series on castles and Zen rock gardens.

Tottori Prefecture. Studied art education and Western-style oil painting at Tokyo School of Fine Arts and graduated in 1924. Studied with Tanabe Itaru and Hirata Shodo. Short course with Un'ichi Hiratsuka in 1936, became friends, circle Yoyogi-ha. Nihon Hanga Kyokai from 1940. From 1925 taught a middle school. Assistant principal of Tokyo First Women's High School until 1955, retired to printmaking full time. "Large, strong, colorful".

He was also part of Onchi Koshiro's First Thursday Society (Ichimokukai: 一木会)

"he also produced floral and figure subjects. Many of his designs are characterized by multiple vantage points, and his partly abstracted sand gardens often contrast an atmosphere of contemplation with somewhat severe or repeated geometrical forms used to construct the compositions. Subtle modulations also contribute toward a sophisticated surface in his compositions. In other examples, the use of intense red, orange, yellow, and green colors animate the designs, vividly distinguishing the scenes from the more quiet aspects of his oeuvre." Also fascinated by Japanese rock gardens, Hashimoto designed many views of the subject.

https://www.viewingjapaneseprints.net/texts/sosaku_hanga/hashimoto_okiie.html

He told Oliver Statler "I like architectural detail and I have a special feeling for old stone walls. It's tragic how fast the castles are disappearing. I'd like to make a series of prints of some of the great ones at various times of the day so that people in the future will have some idea [of] what they looked like. They're important to Japan and important to me." Although Hashimoto enjoyed working in oils, he preferred printmaking. He told Oliver Statler (see 1956 ref. below) that, "I feel I can get more expression from the carving tool than I ever can from the brush. The brush goes along too easily. I like the resistence that the block gives me. And don't be misled, the whole process of making prints is hard work — it's hard but satisfying." He also mentioned that, "I like to sketch on the spot, and I use the line of traditional Japanese painting because I I think it has something in common with the line of prints." Okiie began incorporating figures and creating portraits, especially of women, later in his artistic career. overlap of lines and shapes to create texture. He experimented with the woodblock printing process, which is apparent in his more abstract prints that show solid blocks of colored shapes and loose, dark line work to define the image. Okiie became especially well known and highly sought out internationally after Oliver Statler’s inclusion of Okiie’s prints in the book Modern Japanese Prints: An Art Reborn (1960). The artist passed away on August 18, 1993 at age 94 in Tokyo. Okiie’s work can be found in numerous collections and major museums worldwide including the Art Institute of Chicago, Dallas Museum of Art, Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco, National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., Cleveland Museum of Art, Harvard University Art Museums, and the British Museum, among others.https://www.asianartscollection.com/a/Hashimoto-Okiie/93

Recreated Fisherman with statler

Ayame to shôjo (菖蒲と少女) - Irises and young woman, 1952 Nihon no shiro gabun shu (Picture Collection of Japanese Castles), 1944 Kojo jikkei (Ten Views of Ancient Castles), 1946 Nihon no meijo gashu (Picture Collection of Famous Castles of Japan), 1962

Exhibitions
Dream Worlds: Modern Japanese Prints from the Robert O. Muller Collection 2007 https://gulbenkian.pt/en/agenda/dream-worlds-modern-japanese-prints-from-the-robert-o-muller-collection/