Accession Number
2004/1.150

Title
Shotō (Early Winter)

Artist(s)
Nakazawa Shin'ichi

Object Creation Date
2003

Medium & Support
etching with applied platinum leaf on paper

Dimensions
25 3/16 in x 21 1/4 in (64 cm x 54 cm)

Credit Line
Museum purchase made possible by Jane and Ken Lieberthal

Label copy
Nakazawa Shin'ichi
Japanese, born 1956
Shotô (Early Winter)
Heisei period (1989–present)
2003
Etching with applied platinum leaf on paper
Museum purchase made possible by Jane and Ken Lieberthal, 2004/1.150 

Nakazawa was born in Tokyo and at the age of nineteen he taught himself copperplate etching. This process involves taking a metal plate and covering it in an acid-resistant substance (the ground). The artist then etches lines into the ground to expose the metal, and covers the plate with an acid that partially erodes the metal where the artist has created lines. The plate is then covered in ink and wiped off, so that the ink remains only in these lines, and the plate and paper are put through a press and the paper picks up the ink. What makes Nakazawa’s prints unique is that he developed a technique that combined the etching process with additions of metal leaf (extremely thin sheets of precious metals such as gold, silver, or platinum) to the surface of the prints. His vocabulary of forms consists primarily of geometric shapes, often accompanied by classic Japanese writing.

Primary Object Classification
Print

Primary Object Type
black and white print

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form. Keywords
calligraphy (visual works)
copper engraving (printing process)
geometric shape