Rode kraag 1928

Yamakawa Shuho made this woodblock print, Rode kraag, and right away, you notice how the flat planes of colour create a study in composition. It's the kind of image where the process is part of the point. The way the colours are layered and how the texture emerges is really interesting. The artist is using the pink of the kimono to create a sensation of depth, playing with colour to make you feel like you could almost touch the image. Look closely, and you see the way the lines create a kind of dynamic energy, almost like the image is moving. The choice of rendering the subject in profile suggests the influence of earlier woodblock traditions, but the flattened perspective and bold use of colour mark Shuho as a modernizer, not dissimilar to how Matisse used colour. What makes this image so great is that it embraces both simplicity and subtlety.