Edutainment > Toraji Ishikawa - 1875-1964

After a Shower

By Toraji Ishikawa

Although Toraji Ishikawa was a painter and printmaker with a wide variety of subjects and a focus on landscapes, everybody knows him mainly for a series of ten prints in Shin Hanga style, published in 1934 and titled Ten Types of Female Nudes.

First Publication: June 2002
Latest Update: May 2013

A Painter and Printmaker from Kochi

Toraji Ishikawa was born in Kochi. He studied art with Koyama Shotaro. In 1902 the young artist traveled through the United States and Europe for two years.

Back in Japan, Toraji Ishikawa founded Taiheiyogakai, an artist association of Western style painters. He exhibited in all major Japanese art shows since the 1920s. In 1923 he contributed to the supplement of Dai Chikamatsu Zenshu - The Complete Works of Chikamatsu.

Ten Types of Female Nudes

Ten Types of Female Nudes

By Toraji Ishkawa

Dance

In 1934 Toraji Ishikawa created the famous series of ten chubby female nudes. People seem to know him only by these prints as if he had not created anything else in his life.

The irony is that Toraji was more of a Western style painter. These ten prints - with one exception - are more Japanese in style than anything else the artist had done before.

The print titled Dance is a rather modern design of a voluptuous nude striptease dancer in high-heels. It is in contrast to the other 9 prints showing nudes in the seclusion of their intimate privacy - playing with pets, reading a book or doing their toilette in a modern bathroom.

Imperial Award for Toraji Ishikawa

In 1943 Toraji Ishikawa became head of the Pacific Art School. After World War II, he was active at the Tokyo University of Education. In 1953 he received the Imperial Award of the Japan Art Academy.

Landscape Prints

By Toraji Ishikawa

Mt. Fuji Seen from Yoshida - Detail

By Toraji Ishikawa

Chinese Junks

More Female Nudes

The series is discussed in detail in an article titled Ten Types of Female Nudes.

By Toraji Ishikawa

Reading

Morning

By Toraji Ishikawa

Heroine Toragozen

Toraji Ishikawa contributed to the series "Dai Chikamatsu Zenshu" ("The complete Works of Chikamatsu Manzaemon"). The design shows tThe heroine Toragozen in the kabuki play of the Soga Brothers, "Soga". Toragozen laments her lover, Soga-Juro-Sukenari, who was killed in the revenge battle.

By Toraji Ishikawa

Tora Gozen - Chikamatsu Series

More about Toraji Ishikawa

26 sold object(s) by Toraji Ishikawa 1875-1964 in our Art Archive

3 signature(s) by Toraji Ishikawa in our Signature Database

Other Pages Related to Toraji Ishikawa

• 10 Types of Female Nudes
• Modern Japanese Prints III

Author: Dieter Wanczura
.. more about Dieter Wanczura

Literature sources used for this Toraji Ishikawa biography

• Helen Merritt and Nanako Yamada, "Guide to Modern Japanese Woodblock Prints: 1900-1975", published by University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, ISBN 0-8248-1732-X
• Helen Merritt, "Modern Japanese Woodblock Prints - The early years", published by University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu, 1990, ISBN 0-8248-1200-X
• The Female Image - 20th century prints of Japanese beauties, ABE PUBLISHING LTD., Tokyo & Hotei Publishing Leiden, ISBN 90-74822-20-7

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