Sadao Watanabe (Japanese, 1913-1996), woodcut print entitled, "The Arrival of the Wise Men in Bethlehem," ca. late 1960s to early 1970s CE. A colorful stencil woodcut print depicting the Three Wise Men alighting from their horses in Bethlehem as Mary awaits at the door on the right. The bold expressive style and religious iconography are characteristic of artist Sadao Watanabe, a Japanese Christian artist whose biblical prints were delineated in the Japanese mingei (folk art) tradition and whose works have been exhibited in major museums throughout the world, including the Vatican and the Louvre. Size: 4.5" L x 5.875" W (11.4 cm x 14.9 cm); matted and framed 9.375" L x 11.375" W (23.8 cm x 28.9 cm)

Sadao Watanabe was born in Tokyo in 1913, was baptized Christian in 1930, and throughout his career, based his designs exclusively on biblical subjects. This said, the Christian stories and figures of his works are interpreted via traditional Japanese techniques. Watanabe took part in the folk-art movement in Japan which began in the 1930's as an attempt to preserve various traditional arts, among them stencil printing which Watanabe appreciated. Watanabe and Yoshitoshi Mori were the best-known 'sosaku hanga' artists who used the medium called kappazuri (stencil printing), a technique related to 'katazome' (stencil dyeing) which originated in Okinawa (the technique there was called 'bingata').

Provenance: purchased by Dr. Ernst F. Tonsing of Thousand Oaks, California USA in 1975

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