Henmi Takashi Sosuka Hanga

Henmi Takashi (1895-1944) was a Japanese woodblock printer associated with the sosaku hanga "creative prints" movement.

Henmi Takashi was born in Wakayama. He went to Tokyo and enrolled in a college. He saw an exhibition dedicated to the late Tanaka Kōichi (1892-1915). Tanaka, who was three years older, also came from Wakayama and was already known to Hemmi as a poet. Now he was encouraged to take up woodcuts as well.

Henmi could not sustain a living solely as a printmaker and took a job in the design department of the company Lion.

In 1928 he joined with seven other sosaku hanga artists to work on the 100 Views of New Tokyo series, to which he contributed twelve prints, which are all included here.

Beyond printmaking, Takashi Henmi was active as a poet, aligning with the sosaku hanga artists' vibrant interest in poetry. The mentor of the sosaku hanga group, Koshiro Onchi, had published a combined magazine for art and poetry.