Unsodo (芸艸堂, Unsōdō) is a Japanese publishing company, specializing in art books.[2] The company was founded in 1891 in Kyoto, Japan by Yamada Naosaburō (山田直三郎), and continues operations at its headquarters in Nakagyo-ku, Kyoto. Amongst other products, they produce hand carved and printed woodblock prints.[2]
Native name | 美術書出版株式会社芸艸堂 |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1891 Kyoto, Japan |
| Founder | Yamada Naosaburō |
| Headquarters | Nakagyo-ku, Kyoto, Japan[1] |
| Products | |
| Website | www |
Company name
editUnsodo (芸艸堂), contains a combination of the kanji 芸艸 (unsō), meaning Rue, and 堂 (dō), a suffix used to indicate a building. The use of rue in the name is due to its use in traditional Japanese bookmark production, as a way to deter pests from damaging books.[2][3]
History
editFounded in Kyoto Japan in 1891, a major part of early production at Unsodo was that of kimono pattern books. Traditional woodblock printing methods would be used, as well as more modern methods, such as collotype printing.[2]
Over time Unsodo acquired carved woodblocks from other publishers in Japan, and would use them to print under their own Unsodo imprint.[2] Unsodo is the only publisher of art books bound using a traditional method named tesuri mokuhanga (手摺木版画).[4]
Unsodo have also commissioned and collaborate with 20th and 21st century artists to produce original carvings and prints, such as Shiro Kasamatsu,[5] Takeuchi Seihō[6] and Kamisaka Sekka.[7] With Seihō, they produced Seihō's Masterpieces (栖鳳逸品集, Seihō's Ippin Shū)[8] between 1937 and 1942 which was described by Jack Hillier as "one of the most magnificent printing achievements of the twentieth century."[9] With Kasamatsu, they have produced in excess of 100 original Shin-hanga prints between 1898 and 1991,[6] which they continue print.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Unsodo - Company profile". Unsodo. 16 September 2020. Archived from the original on 2023-03-27. Retrieved Dec 14, 2023.
- ^ a b c d e Teruko Hayamitsu (16 September 2020). "Unsōdō and the evolution of design book publishing in Japan". British Library. Archived from the original on 2023-05-31. Retrieved Dec 13, 2023.
- ^ Bonson Lam (1 January 2022). "Unsodo Book Vault & Gallery". Japan Travel. Archived from the original on 2023-12-14. Retrieved Dec 14, 2023.
- ^ "UNSODO". Kyoto Gosyominami Teramachi Art Street. Archived from the original on 2023-12-14. Retrieved Dec 14, 2023.
- ^ Merrit, Helen; Yamada, Nanako (1995). Guide to Modern Japanese Woodblock Prints: 1900-1975. University of Hawaii Press. pp. 54–55.
- ^ a b Amy Reigle Newland (2005). The Hotei Encyclopedia of Japanese Woodblock Prints. Hotei Publishing Company. p. 501. ISBN 9789074822657.
- ^ Birmingham Museum of Art (2010). Birmingham Museum of Art: Guide to the Collection. London, UK: GILES. p. 50. ISBN 978-1-904832-77-5. Archived from the original on 2011-09-10. Retrieved 2011-06-09.
- ^ 栖鳳逸品集 [Seihō's Masterpieces] (in Japanese). Kyoto, Japan: Unsodo (芸艸堂, Unsōdō). 1937. NCID BA44136047.
- ^ Roger S. Keyes (14 September 2006). Ehon: The Artist and the Book in Japan. University of Washington Press. ISBN 978-0295986241.