Yamada Nanako Kuchi-e Collection in Woodblock Prints & Monographs
As a longtime collaborator with Helen Merritt, a Japanese art scholar at Northern Illinois University, Nanako Yamada developed her passion and expertise in the artworks of Kuchi-e woodblock prints, created during the Meiji and Taishō eras in Japan. For her research, she collected more than 200 prints and dozens of monographs that originally contained these prints.
In spring 2024, UH Hamilton Library proudly received her entire collection for further research and education in art and literary disciplines on campus. In accordance with Yamada’s request to study Kuchi-e prints as an integral part of literature in early 20th century Japan, this project aims to explore available resources and include as much information as possible about the stories these kuchi-e prints were initially associated with. All metadata is provided in both Japanese and English, including synopses that describe each work.
