Japan – Inland Sea at Bingo
Yokohama, Japan: c 1880. Hand-tinted albumen print, 7 3/4 x 10 1/4 inches (200 x 260 mm), numbered A 425 and titled at lower right; very light toning on the edges. Unmounted; housed in an archival mat with clear mounting corners.
The area around Abuto Cape at the tip of Numakuma Peninsula is known for its splendid view. It has been designated as a Place of Scenic Beauty by the Japanese government. Bandaiji Temple built on the distinct rock formation on the cape is known by the local people as "Kan'non-san of Abuto." Kan'non do, still existing at present, was constructed in the latter part of the sixteenth century and has been designated a National Important Cultural Asset.
Attributable to Kusakabe Kimbei by numbering and style, but certain attribution cannot be made as many of the photographic studios in Japan bought and sold negatives and batches of photographs to other studios to make albums that were more geographically complete.
KUSAKABE Kimbei (1841-1932) Not much is known of Kusakabe's early life. He was born into a family of textile merchants but left home at eighteen to move to Yokohama to further his ambition of becoming an artist. At some time in the early 1860s he joined Beato as a photo-colourist. Soon he was a fully fledged assistant and accompanied Beato on a trip to Shanghai in 1867. In the 1870s he joined Stillfried but in what capacity is not known. He also seems at this time to be in business selling his own silk paintings. In 1880 he opened his own Yokohama studio and, like his great rival Tamamura, targeted the foreign community selling souvenir albums. By 1892 he was advertising a portfolio of some 2000 images and by 1901 his studio was the largest in Japan. Kusakabe retired in 1914 and spent his later years painting. He was an exceptional artist and photographer. [Bennett, Terry. Old Japanese Photographs: Collectors' Data Guide. London: Quaritch, 2006, p. 286].
Condition: Very good.
Item number: 1173
Price: $350.00
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