Akitoyo Terada (20th Century) Japanese, (2) Woodblock Prints of Noh Actors. Artist kanji and signature on both, upper right on samurai (titled "Yashima") and lower right on woman (titled "Hagoromo"). Extensive information on tags on back of both, including provenance, titles, and artist bio. Stamped "Columbus Ave. Gallery" on back of both. Depicts vibrant imagery of two actors from Noh plays in the 1950s when the artist was active. 

Frame: 13 1/4 x 11 in.

Sight: 9 3/4 x 7 1/2 in.

#2576 . 

In the 1950s, Noh theater experienced a renaissance thanks to the work of Yukio Mishima, who wrote a collection titled Five Modern Noh Plays. Noh theater, which developed out of popular entertainments in the Heian Period (794-1185) and was codified in the Kamakura Period (1185-1333), flourished in the Muromachi Period (1336-1573), becoming the dominant form of Japanese drama for the next three centuries. The colonial and authoritarian changes in politics and society in the late 19th Century and first half of the 20th Century created a blight on Japanese culture, driven primarily by conservative Meiji policies, concurrent with the exponential growth of Japan as a world power. The defeat of Japan at the end of World War II led to a massive paradigm shift, spearheaded by the arts, which flourished out from under a totalitarian thumb. Several artists captured the rebirth of Noh theater, including Hideki Hanabusa, Yamaguchi Ryoshu, and Akitoyo Terada, who were heavily influenced by early 19th Century styles and the work of Tsukioka Kogyo at the turn of the century. Sadly, information is less readily available about these pioneering post-War artists, as the turmoil and structural collapse of much of the country made record-keeping secondary to rebuilding. Nevertheless, their influence is clearly felt even today as their bright, colorful, exuberant depictions of samurai, demons, and desperate protagonists led to a burgeoning interest in (and proliferation of) manga, which would become one of the biggest comic art forms in history.

Very good.