Tsuchiya Koitsu was born under the name 'Koichi' to Hammamatsu in the Japanese countryside. He went to Tokyo at the age of 15 years to be apprenticed to a wood engraver called Matsuzaki; who worked for Kiyochika Kobayashi (1847-1915); an artist famous for his genre scenes and military prints.

But instead of staying with the engraver; Koitsu integrated the workshop Kiyochika and remained there 19 years; during which he learned drawing and graphic composition. His first prints were subject to the Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895; much in vogue at the time.

The prints of Koitsu are mainly landscapes in the tradition of Kiyochika and Kawase Hasui based on a beautiful interpretation of light to express emotions; a mood; or an atmosphere. Pictures From History