Toko Shinoda, Before the Sun, Undated

Lithograph with hand-added pigment
91 x 64 cm (visible), 126 x 93 x 2.5 cm (framed)
Condition: Very good, with foxing throughout the work.
Edition 20 of 20

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Toko Shinoda (Japanese, 1913-2021) was an artist recognised for her abstract ink paintings and prints that bridge traditional calligraphy and modern abstraction. She trained in classical calligraphy from a young age but began to develop a more experimental, non-linguistic style after World War II.

In the 1950s, Shinoda lived in New York, where she was introduced to Abstract Expressionism and became associated with artists exploring gesture and form. Her work from this period onward used the materials of calligraphy - ink, brush and paper - but abandoned written characters in favour of abstract compositions.

Shinoda's works have been exhibited internationally and are held in major museum collections including the Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the British Museum. She remained active in her studio into her later years and is regarded as one of Japan's most important postwar artists.

(Photographed in March 2026)