KAWAKAMI (Sumio).
Kodo junikyu [The twelve zodiac]
Kawakami's constellations in dazzling detail
Kawakami Sumio’s twinkling book of star signs, woodblock printed in white onto metallic silver paper. Each page is one of the twelve zodiac signs depicted in the night sky. In Kawakami’s wonderful East-meets-West style, Gemini and Virgo are represented as Japanese women in kimono. Rather sweetly, the Gemini twins wear kimono adorned with little stars.
There are just a few titles in Kawakami’s bibliography that note the use of silver paper. Amazingly, this is a style that he started to experiment with in 1944, at the very height of WWII. Materials were scarce, and it was a very difficult time for artists to obtain high quality washi paper for printing. It is likely that Kawakami already had a supply of silver paper from which he could make a limited number of books. In the case of the present book, it is one of only 30 copies.
This particular copy was inscribed by Kawakami to Ban Toshihiko (1911–?), who was an editor at the Asahi newspaper company. Ban was also from Utsunomiya in Tochigi prefecture, and it possible that he was one of Kawakami’s former high school students. Ban was known to collect Kawakami books, and another title from his library can be found in the collections of the Kanuma Municipal Art Museum of Kawakami Sumio.
Extremely rare. No copies in OCLC.
