UEHARA KONEN Japanese Woodblock Print MULLER ESTATE

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UEHARA KONEN Japanese Woodblock Print MULLER ESTATE UEHARA KONEN Boatman on a River Date: c. 1910s-20s but published before 1923; published by Kobayashi Bunshichi with publishers leaf seal visible on the right, collected by Robert O. Muller Size: approx. 3.125" x 4.25" Condition: VG; minor edge wear, otherwise no flaws of note Impression: VG, excellent registration, solid key lines Color: Fine, deep color and bleed through to verso WHO WAS ROBERT O. MULLER? Robert O. Muller’s love affair with Japanese prints began one day in the 1930s, when as a student in New York City he spotted several landscape prints by Kawase Hasui displayed in the window of the Shima Art Company, and shortly afterwards arranged to purchase a print. By late 1939 Mr. Miller arranged to purchase the Shima Art Co. and the following year, he went on a print shopping tour to Japan with his wife where he met the shin hanga publisher Watanabe Shozaburo and Watanabe’s stable of artists including: Kawase Hasui, Shiro Kasamatsu, and Ito Shinsui. He also met and befriended Hiroshi Yoshida. After WWII, Muller continued to deal in Japanese prints, but he was also an avid collector with a keen eye for good art. Although the Muller Collection is best known for shin hanga , Mr. Muller also collected late nineteenth century prints and good reproductions of famous Edo masters. When Mr. Muller passed away on April 10, 2003, he had left possibly the largest and finest collection of 20th century Japanese prints in the world, and the question of what would become of his notorious collection was a major topic among Japanese print collectors. The finest 20th century prints from his collection were given as a gift to the Sackler Gallery of the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C., and an exhibit was mounted. Other portions of the collection were sold at auction and still more remains with his heirs. Several books have been published about the collection. ABOUT UEHARA KONEN Uehara Konen was born in 1878 in Tokyo. He studied painting with Kajita Hanko and the well-known artist Matsumoto Fuko, and then spent five years studying in the Nihon Bijutsuin (Japan Fine Arts Academy). Beginning around 1908 he worked with the publisher Kobayashi Bunshichi designing landscape and kacho woodblock prints. It was probably there that he met the young Watanabe Shozaburo who also worked for Bunshichi as a clerk. Later in the 1930s when Watanabe had established his own publishing company Konen collaborated with on several woodblock prints, although only two prints are listed in the 1951 Watanabe catalogue. Konen served in the Imperial Household and in the Foreign Ministry, probably as a wartime artist. He continued to exhibit award-winning paintings in various exhibitions and served as a juror for the Tokyo Metropolitan. Konen died May 24th, 1940 in Tokyo. VISIT OUR EBAY STORE FOR MORE WOODBLOCK PRINTS AND BOOKS ABOUT WOODBLOCK ARTISTS Please feel free to email us through the eBay message system with any questions. WE PREFER PAYPAL, but in the event that you do not have a Paypal account we will accept payment through the mail. Please contact us through eBay for the mailing address. Items purchased will be shipped only to the address on the eBay account. State of New York residents are required to pay 7.375% sales tax. International If payment has not been received within 10 days of the end of the purchase, a Non-Paying Bidder report will be filed with eBay unless other arrangements have been made with the seller. SHIPPING - Domestic shipping costs are listed on the item's eBay page. Domestic U.S. buyers may combine prints (sorry NOT BOOKS or books with prints) purchased within a 7-day period. Additional prints shipped domestically are $1.50 each. International shipping costs are listed on the item's eBay page, and additional prints shipped internationally are $2.50 each. When combining prints into one shipment the highest shipping rate applies plus any additional item fees as list... read more

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