Shiko Munakata: A Way of Seeing, a new presentation of nearly 100 innovative works by the celebrated artist Shiko Munakata (1903–1975), goes on view December 10 at Japan Society. Primarily known for his expressive woodblock prints in black on white paper, this exhibition reveals the breadth of Munakata’s oeuvre, which spanned from prints to calligraphy, sumi ink paintings, watercolors, lithography, and ceramics. Above: Shiko Munakata, detail of Muk-machi: Crossing Point of Highways, from the Tkaid Series, 1964.

Above: Shik Munakata, Hara, from the Tkaid Series, 1964. Photograph by Nicholas Knight. Courtesy of Japan Society

Munakata also worked in vibrant color on large-scale wood-block prints, using a palette inspired by the lantern floats in the annual Nebuta Festivals of his native Aomori Prefecture. No matter the medium, Munakata’s artistic explorations were characterized by a spirited curiosity and relentless experimentation. He incorporated diverse sources and inspiration in his dynamic works, including Japanese folk tales, Buddhism, Western literature and poetry, and nature motifs.

With his bold, spontaneous lines, Munakata developed an innovative style that revolutionized the woodblock print medium. Associated with the twentieth-century sosaku hanga (creative prints) movement and recognized by leaders of the mingei (folk craft) movement of the same era, Munakata expanded the traditional ukiyo-e small-scale, and generally vertical format, to create large-scale pieces that modernized the centuries-old practice of woodblock prints. Above left: Shik Munakata, Osaka: The Evening of the Crowded City, from the Tkaid Series, 1964. Photograph by Nicholas Knight, courtesy of Japan Society; right: Shik Munakata, Tokyo: The Starting Point, from the Tkaid Series, 1964. Photograph by Nicholas Knight. Courtesy of Japan Society

A major focus of the exhibition underscores Munakata’s first time in the United States, and includes works made expressly for Japan Society as well as works made in New York. The city held particular significance for Munakata. In 1959, he traveled to New York as a Fellow in Japan Society’s Print Artists Program, which invited artists from Japan—including Munakata and Yayoi Kusama—to exchange cultural ideas and build an international dialogue.

Based in New York City for his six-month visit, Munakata lectured and held exhibitions throughout the U.S. accompanied by Beate Sirota Gordon (1923–2014), a women’s rights advocate and contributor to the writing of the Constitution of Japan following World War II. Gordon was the founding Director of Performing Arts at Japan Society and she also served as Munakata’s interpreter, ultimately becoming a lifelong friend. Munakata returned to New York in 1965, again under the auspices of Japan Society, and it was then that he donated many of the works that form the Museum's core institutional collection. Organized from Japan Society’s collection—which includes the largest Munakata collection in the United States—the exhibition explores the imagination and practice of this important twentieth-century artist. Photo above right, courtesy of Yoriko Ishii

Shiko Munakata: A Way of Seeing continues through March 20 at Japan Society, 333 East 47th Street, NY, NY Info