Teruhide Kato – Crossing Umbrellas

Original woodblock print, hand-signed by the artist. First published between 1990 and 2005.

This design is known in two versions, with differing colors for the umbrellas. The current version has umbrellas in red, black and white.

Teruhide Kato likened the umbrella’s in Gion, Kyoto to flowers, perhaps giving him the idea for the great composition of the current design where the umbrellas and alley are seen from above, as if looking to flowers on the ground.

As editions signed by Teruhide Kato or by his widow are much rarer, the current print has a higher price then posthumous editions. For those looking to buy, choosing a posthumous edition in stead could be considered then.

Image size (excluding margins): 42.0 * 20.0 cm (16.5 * 7.9 in).

The print is in very good condition, besides visible remnants of a small marker in red on the back in the margin.

The pictures shown here are from the print itself.

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Teruhide Kato (1936-2005) was a modern Japanese woodblock artist. He attended the Kyoto Art College. After a successful career as a kimono designer, he became a woodblock artist. Here he used traditional themes in more abstract designs.

Nipponprints has a wide range of his prints. Many of these depict famous places in or around Kyoto. Examples are the 1,000 Torii at Kyoto’s Fushima Inari Shrine, Kinkaku-Ji, Kiyomizu-dera and Yasaka Shrine. Often these are combined with elements of nature, such as the full moon, bamboo, autumn leaves or cherry blossoms. In all, the innovative style of Teruhide Kato is unmistakable.

See an overview of Teruhide Kato's woodblock prints