Shimadai & Kasugodai brings together two distinctive inhabitants of Japanese waters: the boldly striped beakfish and the warm, copper-toned red sea bream. This reproduction of an 1884 Japanese colour lithograph captures the contrasting forms of the two fish with remarkable delicacy. Their finely rendered scales, translucent fins and subtle natural colouring stand beautifully against the deep indigo ground. The original appeared in Namima no nishiki, or Brocades of the Waves

UMI

I love these slightly strange late-19th-century Japanese studies of marine life. Published in Japan in 1884, they originally appeared in Namima no nishiki, or Brocades of the Waves, a remarkable series of twelve colour lithographs devoted to the inhabitants of Japanese waters.

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The fish are beautifully observed and incredibly detailed, but there is nothing romanticised about them. In fact, the glassy-eyed thousand-yard stare they all share tells its own story. They barely look alive. These are fish that have accepted their fate, moments away from a sushi chef’s knife.

The surviving prints feature a softly coloured blue ground, although its tone varies across the series and between different reproductions. For this BAXCO edition, I developed a deeper, slightly greyed indigo inspired by traditional Japanese aizome textiles and decorative arts. The intention was not to reinvent the illustrations, but to create a consistent setting that would allow the extraordinary fish to take centre stage.

Against the indigo, their creams, silvers, blacks and flashes of gold suddenly come alive. The colour also gives the individual prints a visual connection, allowing them to work beautifully alone or together as a collection. In time, I would also like to offer selected works in a colourway closer to the softly weathered blue of the surviving originals.

I have not yet added the collection to my own walls because I am still deciding how I want to present it. Several prints hung together would make an incredible statement wall, allowing that extraordinary indigo to do most of the work. My current favourite idea, however, is to combine different sizes and hang them among houseplants, creating the illusion of fish swimming through a reef, safely removed from the executioner’s blade. The plants becoming part of the composition could work brilliantly.

Kevin Baxter
London
August 2026

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  • Kohada takes its name from the Japanese word for gizzard shad, a silver-scaled fish prized in traditional Japanese cuisine. This reproduction of an 1884 Japanese colour lithograph depicts three species: aji, or scad; sappa, or sardinella; and kohada, or gizzard shad. Their shimmering scales and intricate markings are rendered with extraordinary precision against the deep indigo ground. The original appeared in Namima no nishiki, or Brocades of the Waves, a remarkable series of twelve prints devoted to the

    Kohada

    Kohada
    £95.00
  • Tai takes its name from the Japanese word for sea bream, a fish traditionally associated with celebration and good fortune. This reproduction of a late-19th-century Japanese colour lithograph presents the fish in magnificent isolation. Its powerful body, intricate scales and dark copper colouring stand against the deep blue ground, enclosed by a delicate ornamental border. The original appeared in Namima no nishiki, or Brocades of the Waves, a remarkable series of twelve prints devoted to the inhabitants

    Tai

    Tai
    £95.00
  • Shimadai & Kasugodai brings together two distinctive inhabitants of Japanese waters: the boldly striped beakfish and the warm, copper-toned red sea bream. This reproduction of an 1884 Japanese colour lithograph captures the contrasting forms of the two fish with remarkable delicacy. Their finely rendered scales, translucent fins and subtle natural colouring stand beautifully against the deep indigo ground. The original appeared in Namima no nishiki, or Brocades of the Waves

    Shimadai & Kasugodai

    Shimadai & Kasugodai
    £95.00
  • Kaizu takes its name from a Japanese term for the young black sea bream. This reproduction of an 1884 Japanese colour lithograph pairs kaizu with takanohatai, or spotted-tail morwong. Silvery scales, dark banding and finely articulated fins are set against the deep indigo ground, creating a composition that feels both historic and strikingly modern. The original appeared in Namima no nishiki, or Brocades of the Waves, a remarkable series of twelve prints devoted to the inhabitants of Japanese waters.

    Kaizu

    Kaizu
    £95.00
  • Kurodai takes its name from the Japanese word for black sea bream. This reproduction of an 1884 Japanese colour lithograph pairs the dark, powerful form of the kurodai with the warmer tones of an amatai, or tilefish. Their beautifully articulated scales, fins and distinctive profiles stand dramatically against the deep indigo ground. The original appeared in Namima no nishiki, or Brocades of the Waves, a remarkable series of twelve prints devoted to the inhabitants of Japanese waters.

    Kurodai

    Kurodai
    £95.00
  • Isaki takes its name from the Japanese word for chicken grunt, a fish found throughout the coastal waters of East Asia. This reproduction of a late-19th-century Japanese colour lithograph depicts isaki alongside shirogisu and aogisu, two species of whiting. Their contrasting forms, subtly patterned scales and flashes of gold and silver are rendered with exceptional precision against the deep indigo ground. The original appeared in Namima no nishiki, or Brocades of the Waves, a remarkable series of twelve

    Isaki

    Isaki
    £95.00
  • Hirame takes its name from the Japanese word for olive flounder. This reproduction of an 1884 Japanese colour lithograph presents two views of the same remarkable fish: its pale underside and its dark upper surface. The dramatic contrast between them, combined with the flounder’s extraordinary flattened anatomy, gives the composition an almost sculptural quality. The original appeared in Namima no nishiki, or Brocades of the Waves

    Hirame

    Hirame
    £95.00