Posted by Simon Pieman on January 01, 2002 at 04:58:55:
In Reply to: Reproductions of Hiroshige & Hokusai posted by Simon on December 25, 2001 at 23:52:08:
In my opinion, the earlier reproductions do usually (but not always) have better printing, paper and colors. There are fine modern reproductions too, so age itself cannot be a determining factor. Most reproductions are not dated, leaving some unscrupulous dealers to suggest that they are older than they are, as if this in itself added value.
The only merit I find in a reproduction is that it can allow you to have a good quality woodblock copy of a print that might otherwise not be available (such as one by Sharaku - unless you have some 10,000 dollar bills to spare.) To my thinking though, these images are available in excellent reproductions in books, so it is better to invest one's resources in good original prints, which are readily available at prices as low as $100. It makes me laugh/cry when I see dealers asking for more than that for a reproduction, whoever the artist who did the original!
: I recently bought 2 reproduction prints from a shop in Kyoto, both marked "1918 reproducion woodblock" on the reverse. Knowing very little about this, but loving the pictures, I wondered if anyone might know where or by whom these prints were made. Also, what (if any) are the merits in buying old reproductions rather than new ones? One is by Hokusai (on of the Fuji series) and the other Hiroshige (a view of Edo).