Kiyoshi Awazu Scrapbook (Used)

Kiyoshi Awazu Scrapbook, a used paperback with jacket published in 2006, 7.5 x 9.3 inches, 462 pages with tons images printed on varying color stocks / text is in Japanese / in excellent condition with some rubbing to the jacket.

"Reprint of a 1974 book collecting the early work of Kiyoshi Awazu, including cover and poster designs, illustrations, comics, and sketches. Presented in the form of a scrapbook."

The sale of this book supports our publication of The King of Circles by Shuntaro Tanikawa, designed and illustrated by Awazu in 1971.

***

Kiyoshi Awazu was a self-taught graphic designer born in Tokyo in 1929. Fascinated by the intersection of Japanese tradition with modern culture, his imaginative works blended elements from Japanese woodblock prints, calligraphy and Buddhist art with bold colors and confident lines. Influenced by the works of American artist Ben Shahn, a strong political conscience is evident in Awazu’s works. The Return Our Sea poster, which won the grand prize at Nissenbi Exhibition in 1955 and cemented his position as an influential artist in post-war Japan, was created to protest the disruption to the lives of traditional fishermen caused by the American occupation of Japan. Known primarily as a graphic designer, Awazu’s curiosity and keen interest in the world around him led him to expand his colorful portfolio to painting, theater, three-dimensional works, and picture books.