“Path to the Main Hall” — Masao Ido, original Japanese woodblock print, 1989, edition 145/150, signed

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“Path to the Main Hall” — Masao Ido, original Japanese woodblock print, 1989, edition 145/150, signed

This is a striking sōsaku-hanga (creative print) woodblock by the Japanese artist Masao Ido, titled Hondō e no Michi (本堂への道), “Path to the Main Hall,” dated 1989. The composition draws the eye along a worn stone path bordered by a low rubble wall and the gnarled roots of an ancient tree, leading toward a temple complex glimpsed through dense summer foliage — a vermillion torii gate, a weathered tiled roof, and stone lanterns set deep among the greens of early summer. Ido’s flattened, graphic planes of color and his masterful use of bokashi (gradated printing) and textured woodgrain give the scene both calm and quiet monumentality, characteristic of the best of the postwar Japanese landscape print tradition.

The sheet is titled, dated, numbered, and signed in pencil by the artist in the lower margin (145/150), and bears his red artist’s seal in the lower right corner of the image — all hallmarks of an authorized, artist-sanctioned edition rather than a later or posthumous printing.

The print is presented in its original Japanese frame, with a soft sage-green silk-textured mat that beautifully complements the print’s palette of mossy greens, warm greys, and weathered stone tones. Frame dimensions: H. 45 x W. 57 x D. 3 cm (H. 17.7 x W. 22.4 x D. 1.2 in).

On the Artist: Masao Ido (born 1945) is part of the generation of Japanese printmakers working in the sōsaku-hanga tradition, in which the artist personally conceives, carves, and prints the work — a marked departure from the older ukiyo-e system, where the work was divided among a publisher, designer, carver, and printer. Ido is known particularly for his depictions of Kyoto and Nara’s temples, gardens, and quiet architectural corners, rendered with a contemporary, almost minimalist graphic sensibility while retaining deep reverence for traditional Japanese subject matter and technique.

On Japanese Woodblock Printing: Traditional Japanese woodblock printing (mokuhanga) uses water-based pigments and hand-carved cherry wood blocks — one block per color — printed in careful registration onto handmade washi paper using a hand-held baren rather than a mechanical press. This labor-intensive process produces the soft, velvety texture and luminous, layered color characteristic of fine Japanese prints, and distinguishes them fundamentally from Western oil-based relief printing.

Colors may slightly vary due to photographic lighting sources or your monitor settings.

The print will be shipped insured overseas in a custom made wooden case. 
Cost of transport to the US, Euro 245, is case included.

Wear consistent with age and use.

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