About the artist
Kojin Toneyama was a Japanese painter and printmaker active during the mid-20th century. Born In Ibaraki Prefecture in 1921, Toneyama graduated from Waseda University in 1943 with a degree in Literature. By the 1950s, he had joined the Japan Print Association (Nihon Hanga Kyokai) and developed a passion for Mexican visual culture. He found particular inspiration in the work of mid-century Mexican muralists. In 1959, he exhibited his work at the Sao Paulo Biennale. In 1963, Toneyama traveled to Central America to collect rubbings of Mayan relief sculptures. In 1972, he received the Order of Cultural Merit medal from the Mexican government for his work promoting Mexican culture in Japan through his book, The Popular Arts of Mexico. His prints includes both lithographs and woodblock prints.