Ogi, or fan-form Japanese woodblock print depicting Mt. Fuji

Heaven and Earth

There is a Japanese poem written around 1000 AD that describes Mt. Fuji as a mountain knowing no season. There’s some truth to this statement. No matter what time of year the mountain is viewed, it always appears freshly rendered. Yet, Mt. Fuji is more than an impressive landscape. In the Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, one of Japan’s most well known mythological stories; the famous mountain becomes a metaphor for heaven as a princess leaves immortality behind and ascends the snow capped summit.

Although the artist cannot be known with certainty, this piece is attributed to Masahisa

This week’s New Arrival features an Ogi, or fan form woodblock print featuring the summit of Mt. Fuji. It is attributed to the artist Masahisa; but no one can say with certainty he was the artist. The signature “chop” is unclear. What’s certain is that the top of Fuji looms in this print as an ever present feature, as dominant in the background as the tree lined ridge in the foreground. Originally intended to be affixed to a folding fan, it now fans our imagination, asking us to contemplate heaven, earth, and all the spaces in-between.

View Product ››