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Curator's Corner

Artist Birthday: Antonio Frasconi

Monday, April 28, 2025 | Karl Cole

Antonio Frasconi is an internationally known woodcut artist. He has published hundreds of prints and illustrated many books. Although much of his work has registered political protest, his subjects ra ...

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Curator's Corner

National Pet Day: Isoda Koryūsai

Friday, April 11, 2025 | Karl Cole

National Pet Day is an unofficial holiday celebrated on April 11. It was founded 2005/2006 by animal advocate and pet and family lifestyle expert Colleen Paige. The day is dedicated to all types of pe ...

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Curator's Corner

Kimono Patterns and Ukiyo-e Prints

Monday, April 26, 2021 | Karl Cole

The Worcester Art Museum is hosting a fascinating exhibit tying kimono design and its importance in the ukiyo-e print aesthetic. Ukiyo-e, meaning “images of the floating (i.e. transient physical ...

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Curator's Corner

Cool Off with Cool Colors: Asano Takeji

Monday, July 15, 2019 | Karl Cole

July can be moderately hot in Massachusetts, but I understand some regions of the world are having the hottest July ever recorded (probably due to climate change). So, if it’s hot by you, just s ...

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Curator's Corner

Let It Snow in Ukiyo-e Prints

Monday, February 25, 2019 | Karl Cole

We have had several snowfalls in the past couple of weeks. On Presidents’ Day I found myself staring at a snow-laden tree across the street and thinking, that looks like a Japanese woodcut of a ...

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Curator's Corner

A Look at Rainy May Days in Shin Hanga and Sosaku Hanga Prints

Monday, May 9, 2016 | Karl Cole

Most of May’s weather has been pretty cold and rainy so far, so I thought I’d look at art (which I do every day anyway) to take my mind off of it. Of course, a title including “May R ...

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Curator's Corner

A Neglected Japanese Printmaker: Gosōtei Hirosada

Monday, July 27, 2015 | Karl Cole

I’m pretty sure there’s generally a misconception about the ukiyo-e phenomenon in Japanese art. It is certainly one I had until I recently came across hundreds of gorgeous woodblock prints ...

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Curator's Corner

Aizuri-e = Wonderful: Kunisada

Monday, October 24, 2011 | Karl Cole

Aizuri-e means blue printed picture. Traditionally, the blue was derived from the dayflower. However, via the Dutch in Osaka, Prussian blue was imported from Europe as early as the 1790s. It did ...

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Curator's Corner

Kacho-e: Ohara Koson

Monday, April 4, 2011 | Karl Cole

Today’s post is about my epiphany of the week. In a previous post I introduced you to the early 1900s phenomenon in Japanese woodblock prints called sosaku hanga. That was the continuation of th ...

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Curator's Corner

Women's History Month 2011 I

Monday, March 7, 2011 | Karl Cole

Let’s kick off Women’s History Month by celebrating women printmakers. I’m a big fan of contemporary printmaking and how artists push the boundaries of the medium, especially since m ...

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