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Shin Hanga prints

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	Design:	Okada Yoshio (1934-2021)
	Title:	Hotaru
	Series title:	Genji emaki (Picture scroll of Genji)
	Size:	31.9 x 28.9 cm (ōban)
	Original woodblock print
	Photography:	Jacques Commandeur

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Enlargement

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Published by Yūyūdō in 1978 or 1979.

Red seal reading Yoshi in lower left area and bottom right margin of the print.

Names of the carver, printer, and paper maker in bottom margin of the print:

Character	Reading	Meaning	Translation
彫	chō	carve
刻	koku	engrave	Carver:
前	mae	before
田	ta	rice field
謙	ken	sign of the tiger
太	ta	fat
郎	rō	counter for sons	Maeda Kentarō
摺	su(ru)	rub
刷	satsu	print	Printer:
上	ue	upper
杉	sugi	Japanese cedar
桂	kei	Japanese Judas-tree
一	ichi	one
郎	rō	husband	Uesugi Keiichirō
抄	shō	extract
紙	shi	paper	Paper maker:
佐	sa	assistant
々	sa
木	ki	wood
一	hajime	one	Sasaki Hajime

Yūyūdō publisher seal in lower left margin of the print.

The kanji 蛍 (i.e., Hotaru, firefly) is written in pencil on the verso of the print.

The direct inspiration for the Hotaru woodblock print was the following Okada Yoshio illustration issued in the Shūkan Asahi magazine (click to enlarge):

The latter illustration was again based on this water colour painting of Okada Yoshio (click to enlarge):

which can be found on pages 104-105 of this book.

The two people shown in this print are a young princess called Tamakazura, and Genji’s elder brother Hotaru Hyōbukyō no Miya. This print is thus not only named after the corresponding Genji monogatari chapter, but also after the name of Genji’s elder brother, and after the fireflies suddenly released to unveil Tamakazura’s beautiful appearance (the fireflies were actually released by Genji who - unknown to his elder brother - was secretly also attending this meeting, but that’s another story).

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References

• David Bull’s YouTube video Beginnings part 1 issued in August 2018.

• Eric van den Ing’s Saru Gallery website here.

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Provenance: Japanese Gallery