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Details
- Place where the work was made
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Japan
- Period
- Shōwa period 1926 - 1988 → Japan
- Date
- 1956
- Media category
- Materials used
- etching and aquatint
- Edition
- 4/50
- Dimensions
- 22.2 x 14.9 cm image; 36.4 x 27.3 cm sheet
- Signature & date
Signed l.r., pencil, inscribed "Chimei Hamada". Not dated.
- Credit
- Purchased 1995
- Location
- Not on display
- Accession number
- 506.1995
- Copyright
- © HAMADA Chimei
- Artist information
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Hamada Chimei
Works in the collection
- Share
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About
Among the postwar Japanese print artists, few share the distinct style and sentiment of Hamada's art. Hamada is unique among Japanese print artists in his graphic depictions of the grim realities of war and tragedy. He is probably best known for his series 'Elegy of raw recruits' which was based on his own experience as a soldier, and in which he bitterly exposed the inhuman aspects of the army. The series won the second prize at the Lugarno International Print Exhibition in 1956.
Hamada graduated from the oil painting course at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts. After WWII Hamada began to study etching under Komai Tetsuro and Sekino Jun'ichiro, two of the best known artists working in copperplate techniques. Unlike the works of his two teachers, which are usually serene, his works are disturbing, delving into the dark side of the human psyche and society. After completing the 'Elegy of raw recruits' series, he responded to the particular postwar political developments, namely the resurgence of nationalism and power in wrong hands. His more recent works depict the alienation of human beings from society which controls them.
Asian Art Department, AGNSW, 1995.
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Places
Where the work was made
Japan
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Exhibition history
Shown in 2 exhibitions
Hanga: Japanese creative prints, Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney, 28 Oct 2000–07 Jan 2001
From this place, Cowra Art Gallery, Cowra, 01 Aug 2004–12 Sep 2004
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Bibliography
Referenced in 2 publications
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AJIOKA, Hanga: Japanese creative prints, '1930s-1950s: Consolidation of Hanga and the individualists', pg. 70-98, Sydney, 2000, 76 (colour illus.), 99, 109. cat.no. 4.5
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Jackie Menzies (Editor), The Asian Collections Art Gallery of New South Wales, 'Contemporary prints', Sydney, 2003, 288 (colour illus.).
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