Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art

About this Work

Hashimoto Okiie was born in Tottori, a town along the Japan Sea. He received a degree in Art Education from the Tokyo School of Fine Arts, graduating in 1924. After graduation he taught art in a middle school in Tokyo, but in 1955 he quit to in order to devote himself to print-making full time. His only formal training was a three day course offered by Hiratsuka Un’ichi (1895–1997) with whom he remained close friends. He was a frequent visitor both at the First Thursday Society held at Onchi Kōshirō’s house and at informal meetings held in Hiratsuka’s house in Yoyogi. Hashimoto’s preferred subjects were castles and gardens. This print depicts the famous Zen Garden in Kyoto. It is a “dry” garden formed from fifteen rocks (only fourteen can be seen at one time) surrounded by raked sand.