The 'Small Print Collection' ...

The 'Hanga Treasure Chest' that I made in 2005 turned out to be one of the most successful among the various print series that I have made. Collectors living in Japan as well as those overseas, seemed to find it a good mix of designs, and an attractive concept. I had many requests to 'Do it again, please!', but there was no way that I could take on such a labour-intensive project two years running. I didn't wish to abandon those collectors though, so for 2006, in addition to the large scroll print that I produced, I offered another collection of smaller prints.

Update: the Small Print Collection is not sold out, and is still available for subscription.

The 'Small Print Collection' is another series of postcard-sized woodblock prints (11 x 15cm) that comes with its own storage/display case. There are ten designs in the series. The display case is shipped together with the first print, and as the prints subsequently arrive one at a time, you remove the previous one from the front panel display and slide it down into the storage section of the case.

I did not carve new blocks for this set, but re-used those that I carved during the years 1989 to 1998, for the 'thank you' prints that I sent out to friends and collectors at the end of each year's work. Here in Japan, there is a long-standing tradition of making woodblock New Year cards, and this is the tradition that I more-or-less follow, with a few differences:

• my own gift cards never use the astrological cycle symbols (Year of the Dog, etc.)
• they are not overtly tied to New Year at all, although some of them do incorporate design elements involving traditions connected with the season (playing the game of karuta for one example)
• I do not use the heavy Post Office cards, but use a high-quality washi for my prints

So, although these images were 'born' as New Year cards, I think that they do very well as general interest prints. (But unlike the Treasure Chest set, which generally followed the progression of the seasons during the year, these prints follow no such specific cycle.)

With the price of each print being only 2,000 yen (about US$18.00), this is the most affordable print series that I have ever issued. If you like the idea of having a beautiful woodblock print dropping into your mailbox every month, please consider subscribing to this series! Here is the page with information on how you can do so!