Encounter between traditional woodcut prints and contemporary artists in 1979
A collection of original woodcut prints entitled “Japanese Woodcut Prints Today”

Ikko Tanaka "Rope"

Based on the belief that not only the reproduction of historic ukiyo-e but also the production of “contemporary ukiyo-e” is essential to pass on traditional woodcut printing techniques to future generations, in 1979, the Adachi Institute of Woodcut Prints produced and published a collection of original woodcut prints entitled “Japanese Woodcut Prints Today” with the concept of “encounter between traditional woodcut prints and contemporary artists.” “Japanese Woodcut Prints Today” is the foundation of Adachi Institute's recent collaborations with contemporary artists from both home and abroad and its production of original woodcut prints.

The project received the support of five designers and illustrators then working on the frontlines of their fields – Kiyoshi Awazu, Mitsuo Katsui, Ikko Tanaka, Shoji Yamafuji and Makoto Wada – who worked with the artisans at the Adachi Institute of Woodcut Prints to produce original woodcut prints. The completed works were shown at the exhibition “Japanese Woodcut Prints Today” held at the Riccar Museum (present day Hiraki Ukiyo-e Foundation) and garnered a great deal of attention.

With Ikko Tanaka, a graphic designer known for his works that combine elements of modern design and traditional Japanese culture, we created six unique designs with a "rope" motif.

by Shigeyuki Morishita /DNP Foundation for Cultural Promotion

Ikko Tanaka

Born in Nara City, Nara Prefecture in 1930. Graduated from the Design Department of the Kyoto City Technical School of Art (presently Kyoto City University of Arts). Joined Kanegafuchi Spinning Co., Ltd., and later the Sankei Shimbun Osaka Head Office. Participated in a drama club since his school days, and eventually worked as a stage design assistant for Jiro Yoshihara, the founder of the Gutai Art Association. Designed posters for Sankei Kanze Noh Performances from 1954. Moved to Tokyo in 1957 and traveled to the United States on a study tour in 1960. Opened the Ikko Tanaka Design Room in Aoyama in 1963. In the same year, participated in the design activities for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics and served as the chief of pictogram design. In 1968, designed the exhibition for the “History” section of the Japanese Government Pavilion No.1 at the 1970 Osaka Expo. Worked on poster design for the Seibu Theater from 1973 and as art director for graphic design at the Seibu Museum of Art (later the Sezon Museum of Art) from 1975. Consultant for MUJI from 1980. In charge of designing the ISSEY MIYAKE poster series from 1987. Received the Medal with Purple Ribbon in 1994, and the Cultural Merit Award in 2000. Died in January 2002. The following year, “Ikko Tanaka: A Retrospective – Our Era of Design" was held at the Museum of Contemporary Art Tokyo.

1. Rope:Lake

2. Rope:Field

3. Rope:Sky

4. Rope:City

5. Rope:Forest

6. Rope:Road

Ikko Tanaka "Rope"series – Six designs

Rope is one of the motifs that Ikko Tanaka worked on repeatedly, mainly in the 1970s. The rope takes a form resembling mizuhiki (a traditional Japanese artform of knot-tying) and evokes the traditional Japanese “knot” culture. Apart from his main field of work, Tanaka called his own printmaking work "graphic art" and made it his lifework. What he attempted in the woodcut print "Rope" series was a combination of deformed ropes and silhouettes of landscape photographs. They are works that allow you to see various expressions unique to woodcut prints in a single piece. Regarding this series, the late Keizaburo Yamaguchi, an ukiyo-e researcher, said, “In free imagination, abstract ropes and concrete landscapes skillfully alternate to create a mysterious feeling within a modern sensibility.”

On a sunny day in early spring, I decided to take my block copy and visit the woodcut printing studio of my collaborator. ... The thrill of seeing ukiyo-e being revived in Japan in the 1970s runs through my body. ... To my eyes, that had always seen nothing but uniformity in the printed output of an automatic machine, the splendor of human handiwork was striking.
-- From Approaching Ukiyo-e (from Ikko Tanaka's The Periphery of Design)

Limited Edition:: 200
Image Size:: 36.0×23.5cm each
Frame Size:: 55.5×40.0 cm Original Frame
Specification of frame:: Approx.1.8 kg; wood, acrylic resin
Type of print:: Woodcut print
Paper used:: Echizen kizuki hosho washi
(produced by living national treasure Ichibei Iwano)
Publication Year:: 1979
Production:: The Adachi Institute of Woodcut Prints
Note:: We will ship the order within 7 business days under normal circumstances.