Title : Pilgrim in Autumn

Artist : Niimi S

Date : 1930

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Source : Japanese Art Open Database
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Description : Friday, 28 August 2009 RARE PRE-WAR ORIGINAL SIGNED JAPANESE WATERCOLOR BY S. NIIMI. This painting was purchased by my mother while she was living in Sendai from 1935-1938. It is larger painting measuring nearly 7 inches by 13.5 inches. Not much is known about pre-war Japanese painters since a much of Japan's history was destroyed during WWII. I do not know if S. Niimi survived the war to continue painting. Though my mother lived in Sendai, she frequently traveled about the country to Tokyo, Yokohama, and Kobe for example. Hence, I am not sure exactly where she purchased this watercolor. One of the larger Niimi watercolor's that my mother purchased. Niimi's use of contrasting colors is masterful - from the green and earthy tones to the bluish tinted mist up through vibrant peach sunrise or sunset, to the burnt orange autumn leaves silhouetted against a blue-gray sky. None of the colors are out of place - all lending themselves to the beauty of the overall watercolor through masterful transistions. This watercolor has never been mounted, framed, or displayed. It has been in her steamer trunk since she returned from Japan in 1938.

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