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Luke Hasegawa

はせがわ ろか

Hasegawa Roka

Aliases: 杉村 龍三 / 長谷川 龍三
Pen Names: Roka（Art name derived from his baptismal name Luca）

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1897-07-09 （Tokyo, Japan）
Died
1967-07-03 （Rome, Italy） age 69
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese, French, Italian
Religion
Catholicism Baptized in 1914 （Baptismal Name: Luca）
Residence History
Tokyo, Japan (birthplace) → Kugenuma (Fujisawa), Japan → Mejiro (Tokyo), Japan → Paris, France → Civitavecchia, Italy → Rome, Italy

Career

Occupations
Nihonga (Japanese-style) painter, Fresco painter, Mosaic artist, Art educator, Illustrator
Active Years
1915-1967
Affiliations
Catholic Art Association, Shinko Yamato-e Association, Kokuga-in, F.M. (mural collective), Japan Artists Federation
Memberships
Catholic Art Association, Salon d'Automne (member), Japan Artists Federation
Influenced By
Matsuoka Eikyū, Watanabe Kaseki, Charles Guérin, Paul-Albert Baudouin (fresco teacher)
Influenced
Yasuko Harada (student and follower), Miyauchi Junkichi (student), Members of F.M. (many Japanese fresco and mosaic artists)

Education

Gyosei School (primary & secondary)
Period: 1904-1915
Year of Graduation: 1915
Country: Japan
Boarding student at Gyosei; studied with Watanabe Kaseki and developed early artistic training.
Tokyo School of Fine Arts (former)
Nihonga Department / Nihonga
Period: 1916-1921
Year of Graduation: 1921
Country: Japan
Graduation work 'Nagasaruru Kyoto' (流さるる教徒). Studied under Matsuoka Eikyu.
École des Beaux-Arts (Fresco Research Institute, Fontainebleau)
Fresco studies
Period: 1921-1926
Country: France
Studied Western painting under Charles Guérin and mastered fresco techniques at Fontainebleau.

Awards

Kikuchi Kan Prize (8th)
1960
Work: Murals for the Church of the Japanese Martyrs (Civitavecchia) and related mural works
Organization: Kikuchi Kan Prize Committee
Result: 受賞
Order of Leopold II (Chevalier)
1925
Organization: Government of Belgium
Result: 受章
Order of the Crown of Italy (Cavaliere)
1930
Organization: Government of Italy
Result: 受章
Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Rays (posthumous)
1967
Organization: Government of Japan
Result: 追贈

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Fleeing Believer

1921 Nihonga (Japanese-style painting)

Graduation piece at the Tokyo School of Fine Arts; a Nihonga work on Christian themes demonstrating his early religious focus.

ChristianityMartyrdomReligious themes

Kirishitan Mandala

1927 Nihonga / Religious painting

A Yamato-e–styled painting depicting the history of Japanese Christians; presented to the Vatican's Missionary Ethnological Museum.

Missionary historyChristianityJapanese history

Madonna and Child; Resurrection of the Church and Saints

1928 Fresco

One of Japan's earliest fresco murals, created for the Ito family chapel (later Kitatami/Kitami Church).

FrescoMadonna and ChildReligious narrative

Annunciation (pair of folding screens)

1949 Nihonga (folding screen)

A two-panel folding-screen Annunciation exhibited in 1949 and later shown at the Vatican's missionary art exhibition; now held by the Pontifical Urbaniana University.

AnnunciationReligious paintingByōbu (folding screen)

Martyrdom of the Twenty-Six Japanese Martyrs (altar painting)

1954 Fresco / Altar painting

Large altar mural created for the Church of the Japanese Martyrs in Civitavecchia; a synthesis of European fresco technique and Japanese painting.

MartyrdomMissionary artJapan–Italy cultural exchange

Victory / Glory (main stand wall mosaics)

1964 Mosaic

Large mosaic murals created for the main stand of the former National Kasumigaoka Stadium, known as 'Victory' and 'Glory'.

Sporting architectureMosaicDecorative mural

The Road to Nagasaki

1967 Fresco

A late major fresco created for the Museum of the Twenty-Six Martyrs in Nagasaki; completed in 1967 as one of his final works.

NagasakiMartyrdomCommemoration

Bibliography

  • Stories of Costume in Art (1942)
  • The Aesthetics of Costume: How to Design (1947)
  • Illustrated History of Costume (1948)
  • Changes in Costume (co-authored, 1958)
  • Design Course (1962)
  • Collected Paintings and Writings of Roka Hasegawa (ed., 1989)

Adaptations

  • Italo-Japanese film 'Madame Butterfly' — title back design (contributed)

Translations by Author

  • Co-translation/related work on Okakura Kakuzō's 'The Book of Tea' (French edition, 1927)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Fusion of Yamato-e (Nihonga) techniques with Western fresco methodsMural work combining decorative and narrative approachesCalm, symbolic treatments of religious subjects
Recurring Motifs
Madonna and ChildScenes of martyrs and missionariesHoly figures in traditional Japanese dressAltar paintings, ceiling frescoes, mosaics

Health

  • Heart disease
    1966
    Hospitalized in 1966; constrained his ability to work and travel.
  • Cerebral apoplexy (stroke)
    1967
    Suffered a cerebral hemorrhage in 1967 in Rome and died; left late works as his legacy.

Legacy

Roka Hasegawa pioneered the integration of Nihonga (Yamato-e) with Western fresco and mosaic techniques, earning international recognition for religious paintings and public decorative art. As an educator he trained many students and contributed to postwar development of fresco and mosaic arts in Japan.

Museums

  • The University Art Museum, Tokyo University of the Arts Taitō, Tokyo, Japan
  • Vatican Missionary Ethnological Museum Vatican City
  • Museum of the Twenty-Six Martyrs of Japan Nagasaki, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan
  • Artizon Museum (holdings from the former Bridgestone Museum) Chūō, Tokyo, Japan

Academic Societies

  • Catholic Art Association
  • Japan Artists Federation
  • Kokuga-in

Archives

  • Tokyo National Museum (holds his Central Asian mural facsimiles)
  • The University Art Museum, Tokyo University of the Arts (holdings)
  • Ishibashi/Bridgestone collection (now Artizon Museum)

In Popular Culture

  • Contributed title-back artwork for the Italo-Japanese film 'Madame Butterfly'
  • Honorary citizen of Civitavecchia

Quotes

  • The mural surrounding the altar not only informs us of the moving martyrdom of Japanese believers, but must also be noted for how the artist splendidly demonstrated techniques he learned in Italy.
    Source: Cardinal Costantini (remarks, dedication ceremony 1954) (1954)

Trivia

  • He was made an honorary citizen of Civitavecchia.
  • The 1954 dedication of the Civitavecchia murals was attended by cardinals and international dignitaries.
  • Supported by Shojiro Ishibashi, he produced facsimiles of Vatican works that entered Japanese museum collections.
  • Many of his works are site-specific (murals) and several have been lost due to building demolition or wartime damage.