Vibrant Line: Works on Paper by Tanaka, Shinoda, and Tawara

Three very different, modern Japanese artists stay inside the lines to express what’s possible with ink on paper—from photo realistic etchings of old rural Japan to calligraphy influenced by abstract expressionism. Ryōhei Tanaka (b. 1933), a master etcher, captures a disappearing past in precise, realistic detail, with a particular passion for decaying thatched-roof farmhouses. Painter Tawara Yūsaku (1932-2004) used energetic brushstrokes to transform “hadō”—wavelike forms of existential energy—into intense visual depictions of a world in flux. Tokō Shinoda (b. 1913) merges traditional calligraphy with modern abstraction in her trailblazing sumi ink paintings and prints; her work often incorporates abstract interpretations of natural phenomena.