TSUCHIYA KOITSU (1870-1949), TOMONOTSUBy Tsuchiya Koitsu (1870-1949), signed Koitsu with seal ‘Shin’Japan, dated 1940Color woodblock print on paper. Vertical Oban. Signed Koitsu with the ‘Shin’ seal along the right margin of the image along with a black 6mm Watanabe publisher seal below it. Entitled Tomonotsu from the series Seto Naikai (Inland Sea). Vertical inscription along the left margin.Sailboats quietly float in the waning glow of sunset at a harbor in Tomonotsu.SIZE of the sheet 38.5 x 26.6 cmCondition: Great impression, good colors, with slightly trimmed margins and minor browning of paper commensurate with age. Two minor binding holes on the left margin and negligible residue of tape.Tsuchiya Koitsu (1870-1949) was a renowned landscape artist and a student of the famous Meiji-era print designer Kobayashi Kiyochika (1847-1915). He gained prominence as a designer of shin hanga (New Prints) for major woodblock print publishers from the early 1930s to 1940. Tsuchiya Koitsu's prints were known for their dramatic use of light and interesting color effects, influenced by his teacher Kiyochika. While some critics praised his work, noting its quality on par with famous shin hanga landscape artists like Kawase Hasui, Kasamatsu Shiro, and Yoshida Hiroshi, others criticized his heavy-handed design and unconventional color sensibility.Museum comparison:An identical print is in the collection of the Art Institute of Chicago, reference number 1990.607.280. Another identical print is in the collection of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston accession number 52.45.