Modern | Sōsaku Hanga Mezzotint
Kaoru Saito’s 1980 mezzotint “天守物語 (鷹を捕える夫人)” (Tenshu Monogatari - Lady Capturing the Hawk) depicts the ethereal Princess Tomihime in a flowing kimono patterned with clouds and florals, her straw cloak draped as she gently cradles a majestic hawk. Against a checkered background and deep black sky, Saito’s subtle tonal gradations and velvety contrasts evoke the haunting romance of Kyôka Izumi’s Tale of Himeji Castle. 🏯🦅.
- Year & Edition: 1980 · Ed. of 80 (30/80) (signed & editioned in pencil to plate; titled & dated in pencil to margin).
- Medium: Mezzotint.
- Dimensions: Sheet H: 52.00 cm × W: 44.00 cm; Image H: 36.00 cm × W: 29.50 cm.
- Condition: Good; no marks or blemishes; faint mat toning 1–2 cm into margins.
- Notes: Tenshu Monogatari (1951), by Kyôka Izumi, became a Kabuki hit in 1955. It tells of forbidden love between Princess Tomihime - the spirit of Himeji Castle - and Zusyonosuke, the warrior sent to retrieve her white falcon. Their ghostly romance, explores love, fate and the supernatural.
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