Modern Art for an Old Tale: Fuku Akino's Illustrations for "The Dwarf Pine Tree"

Duvoisin Gallery

This exhibition presents more than 20 illustrations for the The Dwarf Pine Tree by Fuku Akino (Japanese, 1908-2001), a Kyoto-based painter and teacher who was one of Japan’s most prominent woman artists during her lifetime. Published in 1963, The Dwarf Pine Tree is a modern retelling of a Japanese folk tale whose main character is a pine tree, an important symbol in Japanese culture representing love and endurance. The book is one of several collaborations between Akino, the author Betty Jean Lifton, and the editor Jean Karl, who became the head of a new division for children's literature at Atheneum publishers (now a division of Simon and Schuster) in 1961. From the beginning of her 25 years at Atheneum, Karl promoted her vision to publish complex and culturally diverse stories for young American readers such as those written by Lifton, an American resident of Japan, and illustrated by Akino.

Organized by Christine Giviskos, Curator of Prints and European Art