Camouflage

Description

Toshi Yoshida started drawing at a young age and produced his first woodblock print, Crabs, depicting two crabs, at only fourteen years old. Although he moved on to mostly Shin-hanga landscapes a few years later, this print, though relatively simple, was an early sign of his ability to depict animals convincingly. In the 1950s he began creating innovative abstract woodblock prints, a step delayed in part by the more conservative influence of his father, Hiroshi Yoshida. He went on to produce a body of almost 300 abstract works, many of which feature detailed and complex carving and printing. The current print, Camouflage, is part of the body of animal prints he produced later in life. For some of these he combined the two directions noted above, depicting the animals realistically but setting them against an abstract pattern. Even in that group Camouflage is unusual, displaying an abstract background that verges on an objective depiction, as it mimics the tall grass that tigers use to blend into their environment.