{"title":"Prints","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"metropolitan-expressway-meguro-tokyo","title":"Metropolitan Expressway Route No. 3, Meguro, Tokyo","description":"\u003cp\u003e“Metropolitan Expressway Route No. 3, Meguro, Tokyo”: December 16, 2023\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA striking study in form, movement, and modern infrastructure, Metropolitan Expressway Route No. 3, Meguro, Tokyo transforms the urban landscape into a sculptural composition of sweeping lines and architectural precision. The elevated expressway curves overhead like a ribbon of steel, guiding the eye through the frame while the pedestrian path below anchors the viewer in a quiet, almost contemplative moment within the vast machinery of the city.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRendered in refined black and white, the photograph emphasizes contrast, rhythm, and geometry. The interplay of light across textured surfaces, steel, concrete, and tile, reveals a layered visual language where functionality becomes art. The solitary figure in the distance introduces a subtle human presence, underscoring the scale and anonymity of Tokyo’s urban environment.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003ePrinted on museum-quality Rag Baryta paper, crafted from 100% cotton with an advanced inkjet coating optimized for Fine Art applications, this work delivers exceptional tonal depth, crisp detail, and archival stability. The print is mounted on aluminum, offering a clean, contemporary finish suited for gallery display.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eDetails\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMedium: Archival pigment print on Rag Baryta paper (100% cotton), mounted on aluminum\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDimensions: 70 × 50 cm (27.6 × 19.7 inches)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eEdition: Limited edition of 5\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNumber: 1\/5\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSignature: Hand-signed and numbered on the reverse\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA powerful and minimalist piece for collectors drawn to urban abstraction, architectural photography, and the quiet poetry of metropolitan life.\u003c\/p\u003e\n","brand":"Taco Joustra","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":55480214716757,"sku":null,"price":1250.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1091\/2091\/3749\/files\/metropolitan-expressway-route-no-3-meguro-tokyo-art-100.jpg?v=1792691940"},{"product_id":"masao-ido-japanese-woodblock-print","title":"Masao Ido \"Kenninji Temple\" Sōsaku Hanga limited edition woodblock print","description":"\u003cp\u003eMasao Ido \"Kenninji Temple\" (建仁寺) Sōsaku Hanga limited edition woodblock print 1985\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSunlight filters through a maple canopy onto a mossy Zen garden in Kyoto. Stepping stones lead past a thatched, bamboo-latticed gate, and a single flash of golden-yellow foliage glows behind it. In this 1985 woodblock print, Masao Ido captures the stillness of Kenninji, Kyoto's oldest Zen temple. He builds the scene from layered, hand-printed greens, from fresh spring-leaf to deep forest, against slate-grey stone and warm, gnarled bark. The grain of the wood shows through the colour fields, a hallmark of true sōsaku hanga, in which the artist is responsible for the whole process.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe print is titled in Japanese, dated '85, numbered, and signed in pencil. It also bears Ido's red seal. It comes in a slim dark wooden frame with an off-white mat, ready to hang. A quiet, meditative piece that works equally well in a mid-century, minimalist or Japandi interior.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eDetails\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eArtist: Masao Ido (井堂雅夫)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTitle: Kenninji (建仁寺), inscribed in pencil\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDate: 1985\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eEdition: 45\/150\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSigned in pencil, with the artist's red seal\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFramed: H. 45 x W. 57 x D. 3 cm (H. 17.7 x W. 22.4 x D. 1.2 in)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eAbout the artist\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMasao Ido was born in 1945 in Beipiao, in northeast China, and his family later settled in Kyoto. As a young man he apprenticed with the kimono fabric dyer Mitsuho Yoshida. In 1972 he studied woodblock printing under Shigenari Otsubo. He turned to printmaking after seeing the work of Saitō Kiyoshi. He became known for serene landscapes of gardens, quiet streets and temple gates, with subtle colour layering that gives depth and richness. His prints are in the collections of institutions including the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. He died in 2016, which makes his prints increasingly sought after.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eAbout Kenninji\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eKenninji, in Kyoto's Higashiyama district near Gion, was founded in 1202 by the monk Eisai. It is the oldest Zen temple in Kyoto and one of the city's great Rinzai Zen temples. Eisai is also credited with introducing tea culture to Japan, so the temple's garden carries a link to the tea ceremony. Its treasures include the monumental \"Twin Dragons\" ceiling painting in the Dharma Hall (2002) and Tawaraya Sōtatsu's famous Wind and Thunder Gods screens. The temple is open to the public, and its courtyards and moss gardens are still among the calmest places in the city.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eCondition\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWear consistent with age and use.\u003c\/p\u003e\n","brand":"Masao Ido","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":55480218288469,"sku":null,"price":1100.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1091\/2091\/3749\/files\/masao-ido-kenninji-temple-jian-ren-si-sosaku-hanga-limited-edition-639.jpg?v=1792691945"},{"product_id":"sosaku-hanga-woodblock-print-masao-ido","title":"Hōjō Nantei \"South garden of the Hōjō\" Sōsaku Hanga woodblock print by Masao Ido","description":"\u003cp\u003eHōjō Nantei (方丈南庭) \"South garden of the Hōjō\", Sōsaku Hanga woodblock print by Masao Ido 1990\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA raked gravel garden in raking light, reduced to stone, shadow and rhythm. In Hōjō Nantei (方丈南庭), Masao Ido takes one of the quietest places in Japanese culture, the dry garden before a Zen abbot's quarters, and gives it a graphic, almost modernist clarity. Concentric ripples of combed gravel swell around a single upright stone. Dark rock formations anchor the left. A diagonal pavement of pale grey and blue tiles leads the eye toward the shadowed timber doors beyond. The palette is restrained, but the surfaces are rich, with the speckled texture of the gravel and paper-white shōji panels printed in carefully layered blocks.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is a fine impression of a limited edition, numbered 12\/150, dated '90, titled and signed in pencil by the artist, and bearing his red seal. It comes in its original Japanese frame with a white mat, which suits the print's tonal calm. Its cool greys make it easy to place in a minimalist, mid-century or contemporary interior, where it works as a meditative counterpoint to wood, leather and stone.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eAbout the artist\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMasao Ido (井堂雅夫, b. 1945) is a Kyoto-based printmaker associated with the Sōsaku Hanga (\"creative print\") tradition, in which the artist conceives, carves and prints the work. He is best known for architectural and garden subjects around Kyoto's temples, rendered in flat planes of colour with subtle surface texture.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eAbout the Hōjō\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Hōjō (方丈) is the abbot's residence of a Zen temple, named for the \"ten-foot-square\" hut of the sage Vimalakirti. Its south garden (nantei, 南庭) is traditionally a kare-sansui, or dry landscape: raked gravel suggests water and stones suggest islands or mountains. These gardens are meant for contemplation rather than strolling, which is why Ido's composition feels so still.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eDetails\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMedium: colour woodblock print on washi\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eEdition: 12\/150, dated 1990\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eSigned in pencil, titled and numbered, with red seal\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFrame: original Japanese frame, H 48 × W 60 × D 2.5 cm (H 18.9 × W 23.6 × D 1.0 in)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCondition: very good, with some light toning to the paper margin\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eCondition\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWear consistent with age and use.\u003c\/p\u003e\n","brand":"Masao Ido","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":55480225464661,"sku":null,"price":1100.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1091\/2091\/3749\/files\/hojo-nantei-fang-zhang-nan-ting-south-garden-of-the-hojo-sosaku-hanga-woodblock-465.jpg?v=1792691953"},{"product_id":"japanese-woodblock-print-masao-ido-limited-edition","title":"Shinkoin Temple Japanese woodblock print by Masao Ido limited edition 27\/180","description":"\u003cp\u003eShinkoin Temple 1992 Japanese woodblock print by Masao Ido limited edition 27\/180 original frame\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe pencil inscription at lower left reads 神光院, which is Shinkō-in (Shinkoin). It is a Buddhist temple in the north of Kyoto. The date is \"'92\", and the numbering reads 27\/180.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSunlight flickers across a still pond, and moss-covered black rocks rest beside a raked gravel path. In this 1992 woodblock print, Masao Ido turns a quiet corner of the Shinkoin temple garden in Kyoto into a study in light, texture and calm.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIdo builds the scene from layered colour blocks. The water is a pale silvery blue, broken by dappled sunlight, and a fine grain in the surface gives it a shimmer. Against it, the deep greens of the moss and shrubs and the near-black stones feel graphic and modern, yet still rooted in the Japanese woodblock tradition. The effect is serene and contemplative, and it works equally well in a mid-century, minimalist or Japandi interior.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe print is titled in Japanese, dated '92, numbered 27\/180 and signed \"Masao Ido\" in pencil. It also bears the artist's red seal. It is presented in its original Japanese frame, with a cream mat and a dark brown wooden frame. The reverse carries the original gallery label with a biography of the artist (Hamakaze Art).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eAbout Masao Ido\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMasao Ido (井堂 雅夫) is a Japanese woodblock printer and textile dyer, born in 1945 in Manchuria. He is a council member (評議員) of the Sankigakai art association. He was selected for the Nichido Print Grand Prix and for the exhibitions of the Japan Print Association. He has had solo exhibitions at department stores across Japan and in the United States, Switzerland and Australia.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eHis career extends beyond printmaking. He designed stage sets for the Hanayagi school of Japanese dance, and in 1986 he created export packaging designs for Shiseido. His work is held in public collections including Kyoto Prefecture, the Fukui Prefectural Board of Education, Morioka City and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. The label also mentions the director of the Museum of Modern Art in New York.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe print belongs to the modern Japanese hanga tradition. It is a contemporary heir to shin-hanga and sōsaku-hanga, with flat, bold colour planes, simplified forms and a precise multi-block technique. Temple gardens, moss and stone are recurring subjects for Ido, and he handles them with a graphic, almost abstract clarity.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eDetails\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eCreator: Masao Ido (b. 1945)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eTitle: Shinkoin Temple (神光院)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDate: 1992\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eMedium: Colour woodblock print on paper\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eEdition: 27\/180, titled, dated and signed in pencil, with red seal\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eFrame: original Japanese wooden frame\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eDimensions (frame): H 44 x W 57 x D 3 cm \/ H 17.3 x W 22.4 x D 1.2 in\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eOrigin: Japan\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003ch3\u003eCondition\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWear consistent with age and use.\u003c\/p\u003e\n","brand":"Masao Ido","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":55480229036373,"sku":null,"price":1050.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1091\/2091\/3749\/files\/shinkoin-temple-1992-japanese-woodblock-print-by-masao-ido-limited-256.jpg?v=1792691959"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1091\/2091\/3749\/collections\/masao-ido-kenninji-temple-jian-ren-si-sosaku-hanga-limited-edition-639.jpg?v=1792692535","url":"https:\/\/abesdc-b1.myshopify.com\/collections\/prints.oembed","provider":"Vintage Objects","version":"1.0","type":"link"}