Keisuke Serizawa

Calendar for July 1968 (Japanese Festivals & Events: Umi no Hin, Tanabata, & Obon)

Keisuke Serizawa’s original hand-stenciled dye print, "Calendar for July 1968 (Japanese Festivals & Events: Umi no Hin, Tanabata, & Obon)" is printed upon hand-made mulberry (rice) paper and with full margins as published by the Keisuke Serizawa workshop in 1967-1968. A leading ‘Mingei’ (folk art) artist, Keisuke Serizawa printed and published annual katazome (kataezome) calendars from the late 1950’s to the early 1980’s. In Japan, there are several holidays and festivals (matsuri), that take place during the month of July. The first to note is Ocean Day (umi no hi), or Sea Day which now occurs on the third Monday of July and was recently introduced in 1995 as a national holiday to celebrate the ocean’s bounty. Another festival is Tanabata which means the night of the seventh, also known as the Star Festival, an ancient festival based on a Chinese legend of two lovers who are only permitted to meet once a year. On this day, people decorate the entrance to their homes, back yards, and the main streets with colorful displays of long paper streamers and various paper ornaments where they have written their wishes, poems or prayers. It is believed that if you write your wishes on a strip of paper, and hang it on a branch, your wish may come true. Our third matsuri (festival) is the Obon or (Festival of the Souls), an annual Buddhist event held to commemorate the spirits. During this event, Japanese people visit family altars and graves, burning incense, preparing for spirits who are believed to return each year to our world to visit relatives. Lanterns are hung in front of houses to guide them to our world and floating lanterns are put into rivers, lakes and seas in order to guide them back into their own world. One of the most important things to keep in mind is the ability of the Japanese people to maintain their traditional beliefs. "Calendar for July 1968 (Japanese Festivals & Events: Umi no Hin, Tanabata, & Obon)" is a fine, original example of the Mingei art created by the 20th century Japanese artist, Keisuke Serizawa.

Original Hand Stenciled Dye Print (Kataezome) by the Japanese artist, Keisuke Serizawa.

Calendar for July 1968 (Festivals & Events: Ocean Day ‘Umi no Hin’, Star Festival ‘Tanabata’, & Festival of the Souls ‘Obon’)

View other Original Works of Art by Keisuke Serizawa.

Keisuke Serizawa (Shizuoka, Japan, 1895 - 1984)
#	Image	Title & Artist	Medium	Date	-
01.-		Calendar for 1982 (Frontis-Piece) by Keisuke Serizawa	Original Hand-Stenciled Dye Print	1982
02.-		Calendar for January 1968 (Japanese Holidays & Festivals: Oshogatsu, Seijin No Hi, & Tondo Matsuri) by Keisuke Serizawa	Original Hand-Stenciled Dye Print	1968
03.-		Calendar for July 1968 (Japanese Festivals & Events: Umi no Hin, Tanabata, & Obon) by Keisuke Serizawa	Original Hand-Stenciled Dye Print	1968
04.-		Calendar for March 1968 (Japanese Festivals & Events: Hina Matsuri, Howaito De, Honen Matsuri, Shunbun no Hi, & the 1854 Treaty of Kanagawa) by Keisuke Serizawa	Original Hand-Stenciled Dye Print	1968
05.-		Calendar for May 1964 (Japanese Festivals & Events: Dontaku Matsuri, Hamamatsu Matsuri, & Aoi Matsuri) by Keisuke Serizawa	Original Hand-Stenciled Dye Print	1964	Sold
06.-		Calendar for November 1964 (Japanese Festivals & Events: Hakone Daimyo Gyoretsu, Karatsu Kunchi, & Betcha Matsuri) by Keisuke Serizawa	Original Hand-Stenciled Dye Print	1964	Sold
07.-		Calendar for October 1964 (Japanese Dragons, & Festivals: Jidai Matsuri, Takayama Hachiman Matsuri, Yabusame & Kasagake) by Keisuke Serizawa	Original Hand-Stenciled Dye Print	1964
08.-		Calendar for September 1982 (Balloon Flower) by Keisuke Serizawa	Original Hand-Stenciled Dye Print	1982
09.-		Children of The Snow by Keisuke Serizawa	Original Hand-Stenciled Dye Print	c. 1970	Sold
10.-		Folk Toys by Keisuke Serizawa	Original Hand-Stenciled Dye Print	c. 1970	Sold
11.-		Paper Making by Keisuke Serizawa	Original Hand-Stenciled Dye Print	1975
12.-		Winter by Keisuke Serizawa	Original Hand-Stenciled Dye Print	c. 1970	Sold

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Title:	Calendar for July 1968 (Japanese Festivals & Events: Umi no Hin, Tanabata, & Obon)
Artist:	Serizawa, Keisuke (Shizuoka, Japan, 1895 - 1984)
Date:	1967-1968
Medium:	Original Hand-Stenciled Dye Print
Publisher:	Keisuke Serizawa Workshop, Shizuoka, Japan
Note:	Keisuke Serizawa: A world famous designer, painter, illustrator, dyer and book and print maker, Keisuke Serizawa attracted international attention as early as 1925 for his distinctive Kataezome (Katazome) style, combining Japanese dyeing techniques with those of Okinawan bingata. This he applied with equal success to kimono and fabric patterns, wall hangings, paintings, fans and original prints. Above all, Serizawa became a leading artist of ‘Mingei’ -- which in Japanese generally means folk art. "July 1968" (Japanese Holidays and Festivals in July) is of course a fine example of Serizawa’s Mingei.
	Shortly after the end of World War II, Keisuke Serizawa instituted his own workshop and teaching studio in his native city of Shizuoka. His reputation continued to spread and he received the highest award for any artist in 1956 when he was designated a “Living National Treasure” by the Emperor of Japan. After Serizawa’s death in 1984 the Tohoku Fukushi University in Sendai, Tohoku District, constructed a museum comprised solely of Serizawa’s art. The Serizawa Keisuke Art & Craft Museum now contains over 200 examples of this artist’s fabric patterns and wall hangings and about one thousand examples of his paper dyeing workshop productions such as original prints, fans and calendars.
	The art of Keisuke Serizawa has been exhibited world wide. In the United States his art has been exhibited thus far in two major one man exhibitions. The first took place in 1979 at the Mingei International Museum in San Diego and was entitled, “Keisuke Serizawa: A Living National Treasure of Japan”. In 1998, the Riverside Municipal Museum, Riverside, California, launched a major retrospective of his art entitled, “The Art of Keisuke Serizawa”.
	An important production of Serizawa’s workshop was the annual calendars which he created from the late 1950’s to the early 1980’s. Each of these calendars contained thirteen original prints, one for each month and a frontis-piece design. "July 1968" was the seventh work printed as a dye print design for the 1968 calendar and clearly represents a beautiful and original example of the folk art of Keisuke Serizawa.
	Japanese Festivals & Events in July (Ocean Day ‘Umi no Hin’, Star Festival ‘Tanabata’, & Festival of the Souls ‘Obon’): In Japan, there are many holidays and festivals (matsuri) or events that take place during the year as almost every shrine and temple has its own annual local festival to celebrate their deity. One of the most important elements in Japanese festivals are the processions or the parade of floats (yata) carrying and displaying their local shrine through the town. Some of these rituals are modest, others are massive bringing together millions of people. Japanese festivals are often accompanied by traditional local music and dance, and with participants wearing some of the most beautiful traditional garments representing various time periods. Some of these events are loud and boisterous with fantastic fireworks while others are quiet and meditative. One of the most important things to keep in mind is the ability of the Japanese people to maintain their traditional beliefs. The following three celebrations take place in the month of July.
	Umi no Hi: The first to note is Ocean Day (umi no hi), or Sea Day which now occurs on the third Monday of July to accommodate the introduction of the Happy Monday System (allowing for long weekends). It was recently introduced in 1995 as a national holiday to celebrate the ocean’s bounty. As Japan is an island nation, the sea is vital to the lives of the Japanese people. That day is also associated with the official beginning of summer and it marks a special event that occurred in 1876, the return of the Emperor from a boat trip to Hokkaido, an important celebration for the people at that time.
	Tanabata: Another beautiful festival is 'Tanabata' which means the night of the seventh, also known as the Star Festival. The festival occurs in July or August, depending on the beliefs in various regions of Japan, for example, those that still follow the Chinese calendar like the people in the city of Hiratsuka hold the festival on July 7th. The Tanabata matsuri in Hiratsuka is one of the largest and most beautiful events of its kind nearing two million participants. However, the Tanabata Festival that is held in the city of Sendai occurs from August 6th to 8th, based on a calendar that is one month later. The Sendai Tanabata Festival is also one of the most striking and picturesque and is considered a major tourist attraction. Tanabata is an ancient festival based on a Chinese legend of two lovers, Orihime (the star, Vega, the weaver girl star) and Hikoboshi (the star Altair, the cow herder star) who are only permitted to meet on the seventh day of July. On this day, people decorate the entrance to their homes, back yards, and the main streets with colorful displays of long paper streamers (tanzaku) and various paper ornaments where they have written their wishes, poems or prayers. In some regions of Japan, people light lanterns and float them in the rivers. Other common decorations include nets (Toami), and bags (Kinchaku), which represent, good luck in fishing and farming and wealth in that order. People in Japan believe that if you write your wishes on a strip of paper, and hang it on a branch, your wish may come true.
	Obon: The Obon Festival (Festival of the Souls), is an annual Buddhist event held to commemorate the deceased (the spirits of the dead). Although it is not considered an official national holiday, many offices are closed during Obon which is held from the 13th to the 15th day of the seventh month (July) of each year. During this time, the Japanese people visit family altars and graves, burning incense and preparing for spirits who are believed to return each year to this world to visit relatives. Lanterns are hung in front of houses to guide the spirit ancestors’ to our world, and floating lanterns are put into rivers, lakes and seas in order to guide the spirits back into their own world. One of the most famous Obon Festivals takes place in Kyoto, Japan’s culture capital, it is called Daimonji Gozan Okuribi Fire Festival. The Nagasaki Shoro Nagashi Festival or (Spirit Boat Procession) in Nagasaki City is also a fine example, with its lantern lit boats pulled through the streets in a parade, accompanied by fireworks, gongs and drums. Dances (bon-odori) are also performed to welcome and comfort the spirits. The Awa Odori Festival in Tokushima city on Shikoku Island is believed to hold one of the most historically preserved Bon Odari Dances in Japan.
Size:	14 X 11 1/8 (Sizes in inches are approximate, height preceding width of plate-mark or image.)
	Matted with 100% Archival Materials
Buy Now	Price: $195.00 US
Condition:	Printed upon hand-made mulberry (rice) paper and with full margins as published by the Keisuke Serizawa workshop in 1967-1968. A finely printed, full color impression and in excellent condition throughout. "July 1968: (Japanese Holidays and Festivals in July: Umi no Hin, Tanabata, & Obon) is a fine, original example of the famous Mingei art of Keisuke Serizawa.
Subject:	Keisuke Serizawa, "July 1968" (Holidays & Festivals in July: Ocean Day ‘Umi no Hin’, Star Festival ‘Tanabata’, & Festival of the Souls ‘Obon’), original hand-stenciled dye print, Mingei, Japanese folk art, Riverside Municipal Museum, Riverside, California, Shizuoka, Serizawa Keisuke Art & Craft Museum, annual calendars, 1968.
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