GRAPHIC DESIGN, Japanese.

Inquire · Offered by Peter Harrington

Collection of Japanese matchbox labels. A vibrant collection of pre-war matchbox labels produced by the Rinshikin Shukai, Japan's first society for matchbox collectors. The bold designs show kabuki actors, geisha, Buddhist deities, baseball players, famous ukiyo-e prints, vistas of capital cities, and even wartime propaganda.This album opens with 100 labels on untrimmed sheets, each one submitted by an individual member of the Rinshikin Shukai. The labels are then divided into sets. Many are after famous prints by the likes of Kitagawa Utamaro and Sharaku but the majority are fresh designs. One charming set is titled "Sports in the Afterlife", showing silver skeletons playing a variety of sports. The wartime labels are striking, showing cartoon soldiers firing missiles, piloting aircraft, and wading through rivers. One set commemorates the "Three Brave Bombers", a group of soldiers who were lionized for breaking through the Chinese lines during the Shanghai Incident and setting off suicide bombs. The Rinshin Shukai was formed in 1903 by Fukuyama Hekisui (1876-1934) for those interested in collecting, designing, and distributing matchbox labels. It quickly grew popular, and in 1907 it held a sponsored display at the Tokyo Industrial Exhibition where thousands of labels designed by Hekisui were given out. Over the following 30 years, Hekisui's personal collection grew to exceed 200,000 examples, designed by prominent members such as Furuya Rankei, Hasegawa Giichiro, Ogawa Saku,

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