Tales of Genji I
Helen Frankenthaler; Kenneth Tyler; Yasuyuki Shibata
Description
Helen Frankenthaler
United States, 1928–2011
Tales of Genji I
1998
Woodcut on light sienna TGL handmade paper
Museum purchase made possible by a gift from Helmut Stern,
1998/2.18
Inspired by The Tale of Genji, this print is the result of a collaboration
between Helen Frankenthaler, master printmaker Yasuyuki Shibata
(Japan, born 1968), and Kenneth Tyler (United States, born 1931) of
the New York-based Tyler Graphics. Japanese woodblock prints are
typically characterized by crisp lines and flat areas of color, achieved
by using a separate block for each color and waiting for each layer
of paint to dry before carefully lining up the next block. For Tales of
Genji I, Frankenthaler and her collaborators deviated from this
technique, adding new layers before the previous ones had dried in
order to give the print what Frankenthaler called a “fuzzy quality”
that subverts traditional expectations of woodblock prints. Eleven
woodblocks and thirty-four colors were used to achieve this effect.
Summer 2024 Gallery Rotation
____________________
Helen Frankenthaler
United States, 1928–2011
Tales of Genji 1
1998
33-color woodcut on light sienna TGL handmade paper
Museum purchase made possible by a gift from Helmut Stern, 1998/2.18
(Flip Your Field: Abstract Art from the Collection, June 9 – September 2, 2012, text by Celeste Brusati)
Subject Matter:
TheTale of Genji is an 11th century Japanese romance centered around an emperor's son (Genji). It is regarded as the world's first novel. The novel inspired many ukiyo-e woodcut prints. Tales of Genji, the print, was a three year collaborative project (beginning in 1995) between Helen Frankenthaler, Kenneth Tyler of Tyler Graphics, Ltd., and Yasuyuki Shibata. Together they created a series of six woodcut prints that resemble watercolor paintings. Prior to Tales of Genji, Frankenthaler helped to revitalize woodcut printing in the 1970s.
Physical Description:
This is an abstract multi-colored woodcut print with visible wood grain. The background color is primarily peach. The colors in the print, including blue, green, yellow, white, orange, and brown, appear to drip down and run into each other.
This is 18th in an edition of 30.
Usage Rights:
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit https://umma.umich.edu/request-image/ for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.