Bidspirit auction | OGATA GEKKO, ”THE TALE OF

OGATA GEKKO, ”THE TALE OF GENJI” - ”The Tale of Genji”, a woodblock by listed Japanese artist, Ogata Gekko. Professionally framed under glass. This work of art measures in the frame, 17'' H x 12.75'' W. Ogata Gekkō (尾形月耕, 1859-1920) was a Japanese artist who is considered one of the great ukiyo-e woodblock print artists of the late 19th century. Born on November 25, 1859, in Edo (modern-day Tokyo), he was the son of a samurai family. Gekko studied under Kawanabe Kyosai and Taiso Yoshitoshi, two prominent ukiyo-e artists, during the Meiji period. Gekkō was self-taught in art and began by decorating porcelain and rickshaws, and designing flyers for the pleasure quarters. Around 1881 he took the surname Ogata at the insistence of a descendant of the painter Ogata Kōrin. He soon was designing prints and illustrating books and newspapers, but his talents soon caught the attention of publishers and collectors, and he started creating woodblock prints.