Waves at Matsushima

Kawase Hasui (1883–1957)
Japan, 1919
Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Robert O. Muller Collection S2003.8.568

In the early twentieth century a group of artists in Japan sought to revive the themes of traditional Japanese woodblock prints and transform them with a modern yet highly romantic visual vocabulary. Most prominent among this group was the landscape artist Kawase Hasui, who traveled throughout Japan and produced more than six hundred prints. This moonlit view of the pine-covered islands in Matsushima Bay, one of his earliest works, depicts a place to which he was repeatedly drawn during his prolific career. He wrote: "It is futile to attempt to further valorize the splendor of this place. The allure of the islands bathed in moonlight gives an impression of eternal and infinite beauty. I regret my inability to do justice to this ideal subject."

Kawase Hasui (1883–1957)
From the series Souvenirs of Travels, First Collection
Japan, summer 1919
Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Robert O. Muller Collection S2003.8.574

Katsura Island is one of the four inhabited islands in the mouth of Matsushima Bay. This work shows its pine-studded slope, which poets have likened to a laurel crown. Two foreground figures in identical clothing, their heads hidden, rake the fallen pine needles.

When human beings appear in Kawase Hasui's landscapes, they are often presented as integral parts of the environment, neither dominant nor insignificant. This artistic vision of man and nature in peaceful coexistence was shattered when the small settlement on Katsura Island was swept away by the tsunami on March 11, 2011.

Kawase Hasui (1883–1957)
From the series Collection of Scenic Views of Japan, Eastern Japan edition
Japan, May 1933
Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Robert O. Muller Collection S2003.8.796

Over the ages, waves at Matsushima have sculpted the fantastical rock formations that dot the bay. Sketching on a late autumn afternoon, Hasui remarked that his attention was caught by the play between the boat's white sail, the billowing clouds, the rock arch, and the shadowy forms of distant islands. The blurry, softened contours of the sail and rock reflected on the water's rippled surface lend a dreamy, placid quality. Decades later the arch collapsed during an earthquake in 1969. Similarly eroded rock formations were also destroyed in the recent catastrophe.

Kawase Hasui (1883–1957)
From the series Collection of Scenic Views of Japan, Eastern Japan edition
Japan, December 1932
Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Robert O. Muller Collection S2003.8.787

The peak-roofed profile of Godaidō, a Buddhist temple hall constructed in 807, has become synonymous with classical renderings of Matsushima. Godaidō is an ancillary hall that belongs to the nearby temple complex of Zuiganji. Rebuilt in 1604, the building perches on an islet and miraculously withstood the tsunami's giant waves when they surged into port.

This example of Hasui's later work demonstrates his increasing interest in architecture. Here, the temple edifice is closely detailed, yet the underlying structures are blanketed by snow, which will melt with time and the changing of seasons.