Ink on paper （hanging scroll）

45.5 x 67.5 cm. 17 7/8 x 26 5/8 in.

Stamped with artist’s seal and dated on lower left

Literature：
Unac Tokyo， Tokyo， Japan， YUICHI： catalogue rasonné of the works 1970-1976， Vol.2， 1996-1998， p.121， No.70174.

Provenance：
Collection of Unagami Masaomi；
Private Collection， Asia.

Note：
This work is accompanied by a customized wooden box， titled “Yuichi Inoue ‘Hana’； 7th Anniversary of the passing of the ‘wolf’； Unagami Masaomi with regards （One collector’s seal）” by Unagami Masaomi

Yuichi Inoue： The Flower of the Wolf

When he was still alive， Yuichi Inoue called himself a “Lone Wolf”. While he was writing， he always posed with a semi-crouch position on large Xuan paper， holding a large ink brush on his hands. His tough style is obviously differentiated from traditional Japanese aesthetic. But he was being very persistent to his art and life. Living a life like a sadhu， Yuichi Inoue had his own choice of writing， and had rarely chose feminine and soft words as his writing theme. However， the word “Hana” had a unique meaning to the artist. During the World War II， Yuichi Inoue was a teacher in public school. He lost his consciousness for eight hours while the U.S Army attacked Tokyo from the air. Later， he described a scenery that he saw during that period—A rain of flowers fell after Sakyamuni read Saddharmapundarika Sutra to him. After wakening， Inoue believed it was a “miracle”， then start writing the word “Hana” in 1950s， which means flower in English. Later， he named his daughter “Hana Ko”.
Hana was a creation of Yuichi Inoue in 1970. It was also an old collection of Mr. Masaomi Unagami， a close friend and supporter of Yuichi Inoue. There are mourning ceremonies every saturday after the death date of Yuichi Inoue each year that people called “The date of Wolf Tears”. In the 7th year of “ The date of Wolf Tears”， Masaomi Unagami titled “7th Wolf Tears” on specialized wooden case of calligraphy “Hana”， which shows his affection to this artwork， and the sadness of farewell a best friend. The word “Hana” has a soft brush stroke with a strong finish， while the ink extended naturally during back and forth， adding an Eastern-style touch to the word. It reveals the soft heart under Yuichi inoue’s tough appearance， his dedicated love to his daughter while writing， and his great expectation to “hana” to blossom in near future.

Price estimate:
HKD： 80,000 - 120,000
USD： 10,300 - 15,400

Auction Result:
HKD: 153,400