Hasui was commissioned to create several images for the covers of the magazine The Japan Trade Monthly. The design for the December 1950 issue featured Santa strolling through a snow blanketed garden and pavilion. The image appears to have been the inspiration for this woodblock print of Santa with a pagoda and temple in the background which was attached to a blank card. Two similar postcard sized images of Santa are known to exist, one with a background of a waterwheel and Mt. Fuji, and another depicting Ukimido Shrine. They may have been sold as a set of Christmas cards. This design significantly departs from the vast majority of Hasui’s work in regard to its simplicity, commercialism, and kitschy style. These images are rarely encountered. It is possible that they proved to be less popular for purchase than the more idealistic snow scenes that Hasui designed for Christmas cards.  They may have also been less likely to be preserved following the Christmas season.

Three examples of a print that was inserted in the August, 1924 edition of Fujin Gurafu (Ladies Graphic) Magazine. The spot within the moon of the upper print is not intentional and represents a small stain. All three copies have some minor registration issues. For example, the sail in the middle image includes some overlap of the trees in the background. Note the visible wood grain in all of these examples which is typical of an early woodblock printing before the woodgrain fills in with ink from multiple printings. Woodblock prints in Fujin Gurafu followed the typical print production method except that the pressing of the print onto the woodblock was done using a mechanical press rather than rubbing with a baren.

Lantern Series

Hasui designed these lantern prints for the publisher Watanabe. Images from the 1936 Watanabe catalogue suggest that the lanterns were to be cut out. A lantern “handle” would then be added at the top to allow for hanging; a small calendar would be suspended from below. Subtle blind printing of horizontal lantern ribs added an additional three-dimensional aspect to the lantern. The intended function of these prints explains the lack of printed handles, the lack of defined borders and margins, and the somewhat off-center position of the lantern when viewing the uncropped image). The numbers associated with each prints refer to their item number in the 1936 catalogue. Print names (which are more descriptions than titles), are also taken directly from the catalogue. This set appears to be from the 1930s.

A print in the style of Hasui with similarities to other village scenes by the artist. The print is without seal or signature and is occasionally accredited to the artist. Others have considered it as a print by an unidentified artist which was likely designed after a Hasui print. Copies of this print appeared in print packets by the publisher Watanabe which were distributed to guests of the Pigeon Bus Company. Further research is required to determine whether Hasui actually designed this image.

A print in the style of Hasui without seal or signature that is occasionally accredited to the artist. Further research is required to whether Hasui designed this image. This image is also know to exist as printed on silk.

This image has been attributed to Hasui. It was published by Watanabe and is stylistically similar to many Hasui designs. Unsealed. Unsigned.

This image is similar in syle to Hasui and other Shin Hanga artists and has been suggested to be by Hasui. The left image in printed on paper and was included in sets of prints that were given to guests on tours of the Pigeon Bus Company. The image on the right is a rare example of the same print having been printed on silk. Both were published by Watanabe. Although the silk image had been considered to have been printed in the 1930s, the lack of other examples until the 1950s suggests that they both likely date to this later period. Note the variation in color of the woman’s kimono and the more purplish pigments in the image printed on silk.

This image has been attributed to Hasui. The style is consistent with many of the artist’s smaller works but lacks any of the typical Hasui seals associated with his smaller works. The work is undated but likely post-WWII. The publisher has not been identified.

These two prints are unsigned and unsealed images published by Watanabe. The design is considered by some to have likely been designed by Hasui. Although Hasui created several small pagoda print images (see examples from the collection above), this image differs substantially from any of the known images with a Hasui seal.

This is an uncut sheet of two identical images of the image immediately above. These are unusual as they were printed on silk affixed to paper by the publisher Watanabe.

Although similar to the sealed copy of Zojoji Temple in the collection above, this print demonstrates several differences and is usually considered a plagiarized version of the Hasui original. Unsealed. Unsigned.

This image has a similar composition to the sealed Hasui print in the collection above. Close examination reveals several differences such as the composition of the mountains and people and the closeness of the temple. This unsigned and unsealed print is usually considered to be a plagiarism of Hasui’s original design.

This print has similarities to the Hasui signed Village in Snow above. However, it differs significantly in regards to the angle of the pathway in the foreground and the addition of a human figure approaching the house. Th print is unsigned and unsealed and thought to be an adaptation of the original Hasui design. The print was published by Watanabe.

A print published by Watanabe without seal or signature. The image is similar to the sealed print of Chusenji by Hasui in the collection illustrated above but has modifications such as the presentation of the boat, the more elaborate tree, and the addition of a sign to the left of the torii gate. Copies of this print have been reported to have been observed with the Hasui seal.

These two prints of the Golden Pavilion are quite similar to the image by Hasui illustrated above. The print on the left has the publisher seal of Takemura Hideo; there is no artist signature or seal.

The print on the right has a similar composition, but the angle of the pavilion, the trees in the background, the script, and the depiction of the snow covered branches in the foreground are significantly different. It also is unsigned and unsealed. This version was printed by the publisher Watanabe. Copies with the Hasui seal have been reported to exist.

The composition of this print is very similar to the print referred to as City in the Rain by Hasui. Compared to the Hasui Print (see the two examples in the collection above), this print varies in several aspects including the appearance of the women’s heads that are otherwise obscured under umbrellas, the stance of the figure in the background, which woman is holding the flowers, and other details. The print bares the Tomoe seal and was published by Watanabe. Although Tomoe has been speculated by some as actually being Hasui, many other images with the Tomoe seal instead share similarities to works by Takehashi Shotei. The most common theory is that Tomoe was a publisher’s house name and represented works adapted from designs by both Hasui and Shotei.

This print also seems to be an adaptation of City in the Rain. It again features a street scene but in a mirror image composition. Once again there are two women with unbrellas and a distant pedestrian, although this time he is walking towards rather than away from the women.

This image appears to be undocumented. It was printed on thin paper affixed to a blank card which reportedly dated to the 1920s, although this dating is questionable. It came with a set of prints with similar blank cards, all unsealed and undated but clearly reproductions of full or cropped images by identifiable artists such as Takahashi Shotei, Asano Takeji, Nagata Shunsui, and Fukuda Toyoshirō. The scene and style is similar to several prints by Kawase Hasui and could possibly represent a knock-off of a yet to be discovered Hasui design.

This image shares some similarities to the composition of Hasui’s print After Snow at Mijajima from the series Twelve Famous Sceneries (Meisho Juni Kei). However, the seal and signature are for a different artist who remains unidentified.