The Old Sage

Artist: Jed Henry

Title: The Old Sage
Print type: open edition giclée print on handmade Japanese paper, signed by the artist
Print size: 31.5 x 43 cm (approx.)
Frame size (standard): 47 x 60 cm (approx.)

Standard frame: black mini retro

A note from the artist on this work:

I'm very pleased with the overall tone and mood of this design. At first glance it seems to depict a simple meal shared by a master and his ward. But hidden imagery lurks in the shadows, hinting that  great danger is never far away...

When designing this image, I closely studied several Yoshitoshi prints, with a specific emphasis on 'The duel between Miyamoto Musashi and Tsukahara Bokuden', made in 1885. If you examine that design closely, you'll see where I borrowed a few key visual elements. 

The white cartouche reads:

闇父の如く速き易き道を選ぶのなら、邪悪の代行となるべし

Which roughly translates to:

If you choose the quick and easy path, you will become an agent of evil.