1977 Japanese Oil Portrait – Youth in an Argyle Sweater

A mid-century portrait of a young boy, painted in oil on canvas and dated 1977. The sitter faces forward, wearing a dark V-neck argyle sweater over a white collared shirt. His bowl haircut and patterned knitwear give the composition a distinctly period character.

The painting uses a varied palette, with charcoal, deep red and cream in the sweater set against a softly mottled background of lavender, pale yellow and earthy green. Textured, stippled brushwork gives the face and background a tactile surface, reflecting a Western-influenced approach associated with Yōga, the Japanese tradition of Western-style painting.

A blue circular monogram or artist’s seal appears at the lower left, with “1977” painted beneath it. The reverse stretcher is reportedly stamped 「号 F8」, indicating an F8 canvas size.

Materials

Oil on stretched canvas, with wooden stretcher.

Dimensions

HEIGHT: 38cm
WIDTH: 40.5cm

Condition & Character

A characterful post-war Japanese portrait with pronounced surface texture and visible age, including a small paint loss on the surface as shown in the pictures.. Please refer to the photographs for the condition of the paint surface, canvas edges, stretcher and fixing tacks. The artist’s identity and the reported date have not been independently authenticated.

Please examine the photographs carefully, as they form part of the description.