noun
sōsaku-hanga; creative prints
Refers to a 20th-century Japanese woodblock printing movement where the artist handled the entire process (design, carving, printing) themselves, in contrast to the traditional ukiyo-e division of labor.
創作版画は、作家が自ら彫りと摺りを行う版画運動です。
Sōsaku-hanga is a printmaking movement in which the artist does the carving and printing themselves.
Ukiyo-e is the traditional woodblock print genre with a division of labor (designer, carver, printer), while sōsaku-hanga emphasizes the artist's direct involvement in all stages.
Shin-hanga is a later movement that revived traditional ukiyo-e collaborative methods with modern themes, contrasting with the self-sufficient approach of sōsaku-hanga.
From 創作 (sōsaku, 'creative') + 版画 (hanga, 'print'). The term was coined to describe the early 20th-century art movement that emphasized the artist's personal creative control over the entire printmaking process.