Ikari-e

Ikari-e (Angry Pictures) “The Japanese Woodblock Print of the 18th and 19th Centuries”

© Dom Gilormini, 2012.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including scanning, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission from the author.

IKARI-E ANGRY PICTURES THE JAPANESE WOODBLOCK PRINT OF THE 18TH AND 19TH CENTURIES

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CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

UKIYO-E THE NOVELTY OF DESIGN ANGRY PICTURES SHARAKU’S NOSE THE RISE AND FALL OF UKIYO-E EPILOGUE

BOOK PLATES GLOSSARY

FRONTPIECE

INTRODUCTION

The Japanese print holds a distinguished place amongst the few art forms represented in the world’s major institutions and museums that remains available for an affordable price to the happy few so inclined as to educate themselves on certain foibles and to become familiar with the various contrivances that might hamper the acquisition of a fine collection. To begin, an effort should be made to distinguish between original prints, reissues, reprints, and facsimiles. The handling of woodblock prints is the most effective way to gain experience and knowledge. With every print that passes through a collector’s hands, the ability to evaluate condition, value, and authenticity greatly increases. Original Japanese prints are available to be viewed in the reading rooms of many of the best libraries and institutions. Examples of any given design can also be found in various states of preservation in the sales rooms of all the leading auction houses. When viewing Japanese prints, it should be kept in mind that the presence of worm holes, stains, darkening of paper, the accumulation of dust and dirt, foxing, fading, trimmed margins, binding holes, creasing, etc. is no guarantee of originality. Nor does the bleed-through found in Ukiyo-e or the faint lines that exist in laid paper lend itself to authenticity, all of which are present in reissues and reprints. Facsimiles are easily spotted, but the only sure way to correctly identify a print is to compare it to a known original. Later editions and reissues are recognized in that manner as well. Several museums and institutions provide information as well as detailed images of their collections to be judged against. A general familiarity with the artists, publishers, subject matter, date and censor seals, paper sizes, collector stamps, coloring, and styles goes a long way when establishing a collection.

The figures and illustrations in this book are all in the public domain.

Each of the plates is from the author’s personal collection.

IKARI-E ANGRY PICTURES

1 UKIYO-E

Ukiyo-e, meaning “pictures of the fleeting or floating world” was a phrase adopted during the Edo period of Japan (1615–1868) and used to describe the character of the Japanese popular print of the 18th and 19th centuries.

The woodblock, or woodcut, polychrome, color/colour, brocade print, has had a long standing as a decorative art, its qualitive strengths being greatly overlooked due to the more quantitive and collaborative aspects of its production.

The ephemeral nature of printed material as well as the commercial value of Ukiyo-e has forced it into the less than desirable position of a second rate art form. Not intended by its practitioners to be neither permanent nor demanding on its audience, the subtleties of this rarefied and exquisite art are easily overlooked. More often than not the condition, authorship and subject of a print has precedence over the artistic value of the design. In that way any pictorial merit or aesthetic objectivity is eclipsed by the dictates of fashion and common tastes just as it had over two centuries ago when the first full-color print was sold to the ever eager populous of Edo (present day Tokyo) in the form of calendar prints.

The year of 1764 to 1765 marked the beginning of the polychrome print (nishiki-e “brocade pictures”), the invention of which has been attributed to the unique

Figure 1. Harunobu: Calendar print, Long Month, c.1765.

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genius of Sukudo Haranobu. The end of Ukiyo-e came with the Menji Restoration in 1868, a period of productivity lasting a mere 100 years. Previously the monochrome print (sumizuri-e), lacquer print (urushi-e), hand-colored prints in vermilion, green, or yellow (tan-e “vermilion print”), and a further development of the tan-e print (beni-e “red pictures”) and finally the first true color print from blocks using red and green (benizuri-e “crimson print”), (all predecessors of the polychrome color print) saw a meteoric rise in Japan for over a century with innovations taking place as the public demand and commercial value of Ukiyo-e increased.

Produced almost exclusively in Edo (with the exception of the stencil print and Osaka print), a traceable lineage can be followed, from the various specializations of the individual schools—such as actor portraits (yakusha-e) and beauty prints (bijin-ga)—to the influence of a great master or some distinguished pupil. Of the numerous schools of Ukiyo-e to emerge, two schools stand out from the rest for their monopolization of a single genre. They are the Torii (theatrical billboards, programs, kabuki actor portraits) and Utagawa (beauty prints, kabuki prints). A summary of the founders and titular heads of both the Torii and Utagawa schools are as follows:

Figure 2. Kiyomitsu: Actors, c.1765.

TORII SCHOOL Kiyomoto (founder) Kiyonobu (co-founder) Kiyomasu Kiyomitsu Kiyonaga Kiyomine

UTAGAWA SCHOOL Toyoharu (founder) Toyokuni the 1st Toyoshige (Toyokuni the 2nd) Kunisada (Toyokuni the 3rd)

Not all Ukiyo-e artists worked under the auspices of a particular school. Numerous personalities branched out to establish themselves as recognized masters in their own right, often heads of sub-schools with pupils and followers and all the benefits and privileges associated with an illustrious career. The most distinguished of these rare talents were, Koryusai, Shunsho, Eisho, Eisen, Choki,

Figure 3. Choki: Bijin-ga, c.1800.

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Eizan, etc. A select few having forever changed the art, namely the greats: Hokusai, Utamaro and Sharaku.

Of these extraordinary geniuses, Hokusai alone is unique for having blurred the line between art and illustration over a career spanning nearly 70 years (from 1760 to 1848), a period of productivity contemporaneous with every important artist in the genre. In that regard, Hokusai was active as a designer for the greater part of the history of Ukiyo-e, experiencing firsthand all the major developments in the color print process, and being so informed, contributed to the pictorial and technical innovation of Ukiyo-e with a commanding and distinctive style and vision.

The rise and fall of Ukiyo-e saw an incredible concentration of interest over a brief period of time and in a limited space. In the entirety of its existence the polychrome print thrived in Japan off of an intolerant society that flourished in an environment of political isolationism (the official policy of seclusion known as sukoku) and strove for excellence in a uniquely diverse culture that was at times contradictory, often violent, and strictly speaking, punitive in nature.

Figure 4. Hokusai, Actor, 1796.

Figure 6. The USS Powhatan.

With the reluctant opening of Japan to the rest of the world in 1854, (prompted by the sailing of the USS Powhatan into Tokyo bay by Commodore Perry) and after a fierce civil war resulting in the Meiji Restoration of 1868, a complex and precariously balanced microcosm was upset, disrupting the extraordinary conditions that had fostered an inspired and contextually rich art form.

Ukiyo-e would never again see such productivity and innovation as it had in its all-too-brief hundred-year history. The fast decline of the polychrome print came at the hands of Western influence, compounded by a tragic

Figure 5. Hokusai, Waterfall, c.1830.

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loss of artistic identity objectified by over-production and the prevailing tastes of the modern world. Only at the point of its disappearance in the last decades of the 19th century had Ukiyo-e found a new appreciation.

Figure 7. Japonism of Van Gogh.

As is so often the case in art, chance would play a large part in the resurgence of interest in Ukiyo-e, for it was Western artists who recognized in the Japanese woodblock print a release from the conventionality that had hold on Europe since the Renaissance. Japonism came into vogue in the later part of the 19th century with such champions as Bracquemond, Boudine, Bonnard, Manet, van Gogh, Renoir, Gauguin, Toulouse-Lautrec, Degas, Klimt, etc. and lasted well into the 20th century.

The strong influence the Ukiyo-e aesthetic of flat plains of color, bold line work, and unique perspectives had on the painting of the avant-garde is unmistakable. Western artists saw in the Japanese print the very thing they themselves sought in a new art, meant to throw off tired traditions and usher in the Modern era. Print designers such as Utamaro, Sharaku, Hokusai, and Hiroshige were held in the highest esteem, their strange and exotic pictures (at first carried across the sea as mere padding in crates) lauded as revelations, incomparable masterpieces to be viewed with awe and respect.

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2 THE NOVELTY OF DESIGN

The polychrome print was a product, the result of a collaboration of talents and expertise, all financed and distributed by a publisher. From start to finish, the publisher coordinated all the essential steps behind the commercial production of Ukiyo-e. For better or worse, it was the publisher alone who was responsible for a print’s subject, its style, which colors were chosen, as well as the general quality and size of both the print and its release.

The specialized skills of several individuals went into the creation of a single work of art. From designer to copyist, to carver and printer, the publishing house controlled every aspect of the printing process. The publisher first selected a designer, who having agreed to the subject and fee, put down a drawing on paper in Sumi ink. The publishing house owned the rights to the artist’s design.

Once a picture was finalized, the artist no longer played an active roll in the print’s production.

This initial step set the tone for the remainder of the artistic process. The design was the template for the final print. Colors were chosen with or without the designer’s input. A limit on the specific use of colors was often factored into the initial conceptualization of the picture.

The restriction of certain colors imposed during various

Figure 8. Shunman, Benigirai “Red Hating” print.

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periods of censorship played a significant role. Most notable of these restrictive periods were the benigirai “red hating” prints (pioneered by Shunman, Eishi and Shuncho) and azuri-e “blue picture” (most famously employed by Eisen) of the Ansei era and Tokugawa period respectively. The use of color cannot be under stated, it was what defined the polychrome print. The elaborate use of color was kept in check by these periodic restrictions, that was until the importing of cheap alkaline colors from the West, resulting in the general decline of Ukiyo-e.

The subject of a print, as well, was often censored or at the least dictated by popular taste. With all of these considerations taken into account, the initial design was turned in to the copyist, checked by the publisher and only after passing the censor, meticulously traced onto thin transparent paper. This copy was identical to the original design, with the exception of any changes the censor requested and that of repeated patterns and decorative motifs often only indicated by the artist.

Figure 9. Kento (Registration Marks).

The final drawing was then passed along to the carver, pasted face down on a plank of cherry wood split lengthwise (against the grain), and painstakingly precision-cut along the drawn lines with a sort of penknife. The negative areas were then gouged clear, leaving only small registration marks (kento “pass mark”), these pass marks were the right-angle (kagi “key”) carved in the lower corner, and a straight line (hikitsuke “draw stop”) cut along an adjacent side. (Figure 9)

Figure 10. Eisen, Azuri-e “Blue Picture”.

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This key block was the framework for the remaining color blocks. Each successive block was carved with identical registration marks as the key block, making it possible for the printer to accurately line up the blocks during the printing process. More than one color could occupy a single block, though at the height of the polychrome print, ten or more blocks were often used. With the blocks in the printer’s possession, the process of pulling impressions began.

Color was brushed on the individual block; dampened mulberry paper was set down using the registration marks as a guide and rubbed with a barren. As many as a hundred pulls of a design could be made in a single day; print runs of a thousand or more were commonplace.

When a particular design exceeded all expectations and sold well enough, more impressions would be ordered.

Figure 12. Shunko, Hosoban prints, c.1795.

The size and orientation of the paper chosen for a design dictated the function of the print. As a decorative object, the display of a design had an impact on the overall viewing experience. Just as the calendar print had a specific purpose, so too earlier hosoban designs (33 by 14.5 cm) were intended to be shared, made with the expressed purpose of mixing and matching. The later development of the pillar print (73 by 12 cm) was just as practical, serving the function of decorating the tall narrow pillars of a typical Edo household. And so it was for the oban size broadsheet (38 by 25.5 cm), the culminating point in the development of the woodblock print. Due to the large size and purposefulness of its dimensions, the single-sheet print established itself, emphasizing the importance of a stand-alone work of art.

The joining of oban sheets horizontally and vertically (triptych and kakemono-e) was immediately put into practice, emulating folding screens and hanging scrolls.

Figure 11. Color Blocks.

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Figure 13. Toshinobu, Beauty with a Book, c.1760.

The handmade paper that Ukiyo-e was printed upon was a major industry in Edo period Japan. Well before the debut of the earliest broadsheets, ehon (illustrated books) were being produced and widely distributed. Ranging in subject matter, from popular novels to local guidebooks and everything in-between, the ehon paved the way for the future broadsheet. Most of the major practitioners of Ukiyo-e designed ehon. All the great publishing houses of the day made the majority of their business off book publishing. If not for the wild success of the ehon, print production would probably have been limited to monochromatic prayer slips, public notices, or theater programs and playbills. So luxurious was the laid paper employed for the production of Ukiyo-e during the classical period, (Hoso paper), that its use was banned, forcing the publishers to print on an inferior quality paper, (Masa paper), a handmade paper similar to that which was usually reserved for the greater circulated book publications.

There was a limit to the size of a print-run. If a large number of pulls were taken in too short a period of time, or if the editions were enormous, the lines of the key block would become worn from over-usage. In those instances the blocks were corrected, or reduced, in order

Figure 14. Utamaro, Print Production, c.1800.

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to remedy any false or weak registrations. A new color might be introduced into a design during the print run, as was often the case. Multiple states of first edition prints are frequently encountered. Entire color blocks were added or emitted, resulting in second or even third editions. The omissions of colors from a design were frequently the result of a frugal publisher cutting corners, or in several recorded cases blocks were lost in fires, or simply the public favor would determine a change in the color scheme. On occasion a design was sold to a different publisher and redistributed long after its original release.

Regardless, the print-run of a single, albeit wildly popular design, could reach tens of thousands of impressions with many different editions over a long period of years.

Figure 16. Kabuki Playbill.

The over-production of the open edition print significantly contributed to the untimely end of Ukiyo-e.

An ever-increasing demand from the public for more elaborate designs (just the sheer size of the audience alone) forced the publishers to shift their priorities and concede to less than ideal publishing practices, lowering the artistic standards of their product in exchange for greater commercial value. The lucrative sales of woodblock prints fostered a competitive environment where designers and publishers alike were left to the whims of a fickle and unsophisticated populace. Garish alkaline colors imported from the West lowered the standards of print production further still, and a penchant for the violent and bizarre compounded by the foreign influence of newspaper sensationalism drove Ukiyo-e to the point of no return.

Figure 15. Kiyonaga, Pillar print.

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PLATE 1

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3 ANGRY PICTURES

The very idea of an “angry picture” (ikari-e) confronts us with the same indirect associations as that of a “fleeting picture” (ukiyo-e) or the suggestive imagery of a “dangerous picture” (abuna-e). In fact so much of the spirit of Ukiyo-e is as intangible, as unassumingly preponderant. From this spirit a unique culture emerged, strengthened by the character of a people who refused to yield in the face of enormous obstacles and strive despite impossible odds. And it was due to the tenuous and unforgiving nature of life that the Buddhist phrase ukiyo, made up of two characters, uki (floating) and yo (world), and loosely translated, (‘the transient life in which we suffer’) was first adopted: … living for the moment,…diverting ourselves just in floating, caring not for the pauperism that stares us in the face, refusing to be disheartened, like the gourd floating along with the river current: this is what we call ukiyo …

And though its original meaning was adjusted to better suit the attitudes of the day the concept of ukiyo was embraced by the newly upwardly mobile and affluent chonin (townspeople).

Figure 17. Kunimasa, Actor Portrait, 1796.

The visual arts of the East and West derive from the same basic need to express thoughts, ideas, and emotions. The

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principles of painting and drawing in both cultures are similar in many ways. As for aesthetic requirements Eastern concepts are more closely tied to written language than their Western counterpart and are less reliant on direct observation of nature. Due to that basic difference a focus on the line and its intrinsic qualities in relationship to form dictate the value of the overall picture just as it would in the forming of calligraphy. The symbolic nature of the written character informs the image much in the same way as any written language.

Brush strokes were taught by a master to his pupil, put down in style manuals (Figure 1 3 ), and propagated throughout a given school.

A break from tradition, whether derivative of new subject matter or due to the originality of a designer, had an enormous impact upon a school’s standing. With the ushering in of a new head of a school new approaches and attitudes were almost inevitable. The effect a brilliant designer could have on ukiyo-e was enormous. So dominant were some artists and their style immolated to such an extent that not until their deaths would their influence wean.

Figure 19. Shigemasa, Series, Five Musicians, c.1770.

Figure 18. Style Manual.

The supersedence of one great designer for another was so often seen throughout the history of Ukiyo-e that it was almost commonplace. It was not entirely unknown for a rare talent to be forced out of the profession (at times retiring from print designing altogether) only to reemerge after the death of some great personality. Life as an Ukiyo-e artist was one of little financial reward. The whimsical and cutthroat nature of the business of popular print design was cruel and unforgiving.

The pictorial style of Ukiyo-e was established in many different ways, not least of which was the depiction of the figure on an empty page or in front of a staged setting, or

Figure 20. Kiyonaga, Series, Five Musicians, c.1780.

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in the case of the landscape, by an inept sense of depth in the picture plane, depicted with a limited knowledge of perspective. It was always the intention of the artist to maintain a balanced composition, a fastidiousness that is observable in all of Ukiyo-e. The individuality of a designer was molded by the manners and trends of the school in which they belonged, for unlike their Western counterparts the artist’s vision was overridden by the demands of conformity and dictates of convention.

Figure 22. Hokusai, Chinese Boys Learning How to Paint.

The expression of emotion in particular was largely neglected. Likeness, caricature, and realism all came second to the subject of a print and the manner in which it was depicted. It should always be remembered that Ukiyo-e was the art of the people, meant as an escape from the everyday, and though it celebrated life with a whimsical and trivial attitude, its origins were loftier. The Ukiyo-e school derived from classical Chinese painting, which strictly speaking, was an art form reserved for the ruling class, and as such, the refinement of Chinese painting was passed down to the Ukiyo-e artist, all of whom aspired to, studied, and admired Chinese painting.

Figure 21. Harunobu, Poetess, c.1760.

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Due to the emulative nature of the brocade print, the great connoisseurs of painting never held the line work of the Ukiyo-e school in high esteem. It was not until the 20th century that Ukiyo-e was accepted as fine art. And, as is often the case, it was not until the approval from the outside world, in this case Westerners—who had acquired most of the great works of the Ukiyo-e school—that the Japanese recognized their importance.

Figure 23. Eisen, Koi, c.1742.

Behind all the empty posturing and mind-numbingly sensational subject matter that populated the broad sheets of Ukiyo-e, a long-standing and highly refined art form was firmly established. Though the Japanese print reached its zenith early in its history and even at its best is often stifled beneath a flood of contrivances of every ilk, there remains much to be appreciated by the connoisseur.

Figure 24. Meiji Era Print Shop.

Above all it was the public demand for novelty that had a long lasting ill effect on the development of the polychrome print. The over stylization and exaggerated mannerisms of what became a decadent art resulted from the overly competitive and unforgiving environment of a

Figure 25. Eishi, Bijin at a Fan Stall, c.1790.

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commercial enterprise controlled by publishers who’s responsibility it was to maintain high standards. As the prospect for profit became more favorable, the motivation to succeed and need to adapt to a fickle and capricious public grew and emphasis on quality ceased.

The chonin, a small yet privileged group of the Edo populace, made every effort to live life to the fullest and pursue pleasure to the point of distraction. Newly wealthy and independent-thinking, they were increasingly occupied by the growing amount of leisure and myriad of activities at their disposal, namely, the Kabuki and Bunrake (puppet) theater, Sumo wrestling, literature and story telling, tea houses and fine dining, painting, prints and of course the green houses of the Yoshiwara (red-light district). All served to shift the focus of city life away from tsu (connoisseurship) to the simpler ideals and tastes of the print seeking public, towards i k i (the chic and fashionable) and osobi (play and pleasure).

The publishers were made distinctly aware of the move from that which was refined to that which was chic. The trends of the day made themselves clearly heard. The signs of the times were unmistakable. For ukiyo-e of the middle to late period the fall from grace came begrudgingly, a slow rot, a creeping decadence that atrophied the promising body of a new art.

Figure 26. Eisen, Bijin Portrait, c.1820.

The breakdown of the various phases of Ukiyo-e is as follows: The Primitives The Classical Period The Golden Age The Decadent Period The Downfall

(1600s—1730) (1730—1765) (1765—1830) (1830—1868) (1868—1900s)

A focus on empty design, exaggeration, and decorative pattern made itself distinctly felt during the Decadent Period. That decadence, aptly referred to as a late flowering, culminated in a brief if not all to brilliant moment. The groundwork had been laid for a flare up of concentrated energies, a flashpoint that would consume and exhaust everything in its path. A distinctive sweetness flavors the broad sheets of the decadent artists. There is something of a desperate anxiousness in their works that informs every design and colors each effort. Of the many designers active during the Decadent Period a select few optimized and facilitated the decline. They were, Kunisada, Eisen, Kuniyoshi and Hiroshige.

Figure 27. Hokusai, Sumo Match, 1783.

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Hiroshige holds a special place in the demise of the polychrome print, his having carried the torch of uki-e (perspective pictures), a genre pioneered by Toyoharu (the master of Toyohiro, Hiroshige’s teacher) and Hokusai (who’s Fuji series so influenced Hiroshige). It was Hiroshige above all who was admired (and still is to this day) by a Western audience. The landscape print is generally acknowledged as a late revival of the greatness of a dieing art form, and so be it, but it is supremely picturesque and far from classical in an Eastern sense.

Figure 28. Eisen, Landscape, 1835/36

The mutable nature of the Ukiyo-e audience of the Decadent Period was such that they gave a favorable and enthusiastic reception for any new subject matter or novel approach. The connectivity that was lent by the depiction of a much-loved locality or some popular setting could not have been better received by a populous restricted in their movement. Both publisher and designer recognized the commercial value of the landscape print and did not fail to take advantage of it. All the aforementioned artists designed them (Eisen and Kuniyoshi producing some of the more interesting results). The landscapes’ popularity and allure was in the ability it had to set the viewer free. It was the exclamation point at the end of the run-on sentence that was the fall of Ukiyo-e.

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4 SHARAKU’S NOSE

For eleven brief glorious months during the years 1794 and 1795, the most unique genius emerged from obscurity and assaulted the senses of the ukiyo-e public with a haunting and fantastic new take on the large head actor portrait (okubi-e “large head picture”) that was at once as strangely realistic as it was mystifying. That visionary genius signed Toshusai Sharaku, and the few facts there are that have been gleamed of his life total almost nothing.

The true identity of Sharaku continues to be as elusive as when first his exotic works gained a renewed interest in Europe after having been neglected and forgotten in Japan for nearly a century. From that point on, the mystery of Sharaku has had the unfailing power to captivate the imagination. The strong influence his strangely evocative portraits have had is telling. Regardless of the modest reception his prints received by the theatergoing public his contemporaries were compelled to copy him. Part of the irony of Sharaku’s short and forgotten career was the wide imitation of his distinct style by the other great designers of his day.

The large head actor portrait was an anomalous artistic innovation, having been established under the most unfortunate of circumstances. Shunko (active 1743 to

Figure 29. Sharaku, Actor portrait.

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1812) was a prized pupil of Shunsho, and more than a decade before Sharaku’s sudden appearance on the scene he was struck down by a debilitating paralysis of his drawing hand and forced to gradually withdraw from his activities in ukiyo-e.

A change in discipline or focus on latent talents was not an uncommon occurrence for the ukiyo-e man. It is an important point when discussing Sharaku who was believed to have been a No actor. An artist might reinvent themselves several times taking on different names for each new persona. Music, literature, painting, and theater all occupied the interests of print designers. Shunsho, Masanobu (Kyoden), Eisen, Eishi, etc. all branched out and explored new disciplines. Some made the change permanent never to design again. Others vacillated back and forth between disciplines, and some reinvented themselves altogether.

Shunko was no different and focused his abilities appropriately. As a creative genius he would not set his pen down lightly. Forced to draw with his left hand, a pronounced awkwardness entered into his designs. In response to his loss of articulation, his brush stroke became broad and expressive. And though he designed prints less often, his efforts rewarded him with new and unexpected results. Out of pure necessity he had reinvented the large head portrait.

Figure 30. Shunsho, Full length actor portrait, c.1780

Prior to Shunko, the large head portrait was a subject of only recent interest. The influence is marked; Shunko makes no excuses. His indebtedness to other artists is obvious. Special interest should be paid to Shunsho and Shun-ei (the former being Shunko’s master and the latter generally accepted as the earliest designer of large head portraiture). Both left behind excellent examples and undoubtedly effected Shunko. Sharaku in turn was indebted to Shunko and in no way shied from the lessons the disabled master gave regarding bold and expressive line work and the intense emotive placement of his subject matter.

The very genius of Sharaku’s composition and color, that the designer so effectively exploited, was derivative of Shunko. Yet it took the stark realism of Sharaku’s caricatures of the famous kabuki actors of his day to launch the widespread interest in the large head portrait as a subject worthy of high caliber artists such as Utamaro, Toyokuni, Enkyo, Eisho, Choki, Eishin, Eisui, and in particular Kunimasa. Ironically enough it was Sharaku’s realism, so admired by his peers, that in all

Figure 31. Shun-ei, Actor with fan, c.1790

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probability was roundly rejected by his audience, leading to a short yet brilliant career.

Biographical information on Sharaku is scant at best. In approximately an eleven-month period he produced as many as 160 designs exclusively for the great Tsuta-ya Juzaburo. Juzaburo was the definitive publisher of his day, championing gifted designers as diverse as Utamaro, Choki, Hokusai, Masanobu (Kyoden), Kunimasa, and Kiyonaga. His eye for the finest talent was tested and proven. As an authority Juzaburo was without equal. For Sharaku’s designs Juzaburo spared no expense, going to extreme lengths to produce some of the finest prints the Edo public had ever seen.

Figure 34. Publisher seal of Juzaburo

The vast majority of Sharaku’s prints were of the kabuki actor (the exception being a few sumo portraits). The names of the actors, the plays, and the roles they were depicted in date the prints and demarcate Sharaku’s periods of productivity. Stylistically the artist’s works fall into three distinct periods. They date from the middle of 1794 to the beginning of 1795.

Figure 32. Shunko, Actor portrait, c.1790.

First period: Twenty-eight designs issued on the Fifth month of 1794.

Second period: Forty-six designs issued on the Seventh and Eighth month of 1794.

Third period: Eighty-six designs issued in the Ninth month of 1794 and first two months of 1795.

These periods are offset from one another by the date of their publication. In that way Sharaku’s distinctive creative phases are ascertainable. It was the first period of productivity that was most original. The perfection of these initial attempts is widely acknowledged. Few would disagree that Sharaku had a falling off (no doubt brought about by his attempts to satisfy an increasingly disgruntled public), with each consecutive period culminating in his final full-length portraits in hosoban form and his sumo portraits, all of which reveal the influences of earlier designers, Shunsho being the most apparent.

Figure 33. Sharaku, Full length actor portrait.

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In Edo during the Kansei era (1789-1801) there was a depression in the Kabuki Theater brought on by the extravagance of the productions and high costs of actors.

The forced closing of the three great Kabuki houses of the day (Nakamura-za at Sakai-cho, Ichimura-za at Fukiyacho and Morita-za at Kobiki-cho) provided a rare opportunity to start anew and open new venues, calling themselves Miyako-za, Kiri-za and Kawarazaki-za respectively. Under the name of these smaller venues Nakamura-za, Ichimura-za and Morita-za were able to continue to operate at a more modest cost.

Figure 35. Modern-Day Kabuki actor.

In order to fill seats, the owners of these new theaters kicked off an ambitious advertising campaign. Such an enterprise called for Juzaburo, the greatest publisher of the day, to hire an obscure designer and produce a sumptuous edition of prints celebrating the actors (both great and small) and plays put on during the season by each of the new theaters. Whether meant for sale or as free handouts, the advertisements of these new productions were designed with the expressed intention of capturing the curiosity of the theatergoing public.

Figure 36. Sharaku, Full length actor portrait.

The mica print bust portraits dĂŠbuted by Sharaku in the spring of 1794 could very well have served as a sort of publicity stunt. The outlandish prints were certain to cause a stir, creating such a sensation that not only had Sharaku succeeded in advertising the new theaters, but also as an unknown artist, had actually influenced the greatest print designers of the day and greatly impacted the art of Ukiyo-e.

Figure 37. Toyoharu, Kabuki Theater.

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There is much dispute as to the extent of the success of Sharaku’s designs when first released in 1794. A number of the mica print portraits appear to have been received well by the print seeking public and subsequently published in a quantity great enough to wear down the printing blocks. This was most probably due to the haste with which the impressions were pulled not the number of impressions made. The existence of different states of the mica print portraits attests to the popularity of some of these prints.

So extravagant were the simmering mica prints that they were banned late in 1794. Subsequently, with the announcement of the ban, the mica print became highly collectable. It had been several months since the mica prints of Sharaku were first released and presumably the artist’s publisher, Juzabaro, saw an opportunity to sell his overstock and it was at this point that he appears to have reissued a number of the actor portraits in second editions. These second editions (as well as the later states of some of the first edition prints) include the use of newly cut blocks as well as reduced blocks. An excellent example of such a print is the portrait of Morita Kanja VIII in the role of Uguisu no Jirosaku.

Figure 38. Morita Kanja VIII in the role of Uguisu no Jirosaku.

The major difference is in the upper bridge of the nose, lower tip, and less obvious, the nostril and edge of the mouth. There is loser brushwork in the jaw and neckline

Figure 39. Morita Kanja VIII.

Figure 40. Morita Kanja VIII.

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as well as the sleeves. Another example is the portrait of Hikosaburo as Sagisaka Sanai, in which differences in blocks are apparent and the double portrait of Omezo as Tomita Hyotaro and Oniji as Ukiyo Tohei, which appears in two editions. These second editions (and or) second states vary only slightly from the first editions. Another such example would be Onoe Matsusuke I as Matsushita Mikinojo, where there are differences throughout, due to the haste with which the impressions were pulled. Also the color block for the robe was revised at a later date and a different signature is evident. One last mention is the portrait of Otani Tokuji as Sodesuke. There is a know impression with a tuft of hair that sticks up as well other differences in the key block.

Figure 42. Onoe Matsusuke I as Matsushita Mikinojo.

Figure 43. Onoe Matsusuke I as Matsushita Mikinojo.

Figure 41. Otani Tokuji as Sodesuke.

Regardless of the greater or lesser differences in these mica print portraits, there is evidence to show that some of these prints were reissued in the autumn of 1794. The most widely distributed of Sharaku’s prints, and his most popular design, was the portrait of Ichikawa Ebizo IV as Takemura Sadanoshin. There are at least three states of this print and far more examples than any other print by Sharaku in existence today. There is a noted impression (acquired in Dresden in 1896 and illustrated in Kurth’s book) that is easily mistaken as a first edition. (Plate 2) However, the existence of later states suggests that this wildly popular design may also have been reissued as a second edition in 1794. What distinguishes this dubious impression from those second editions previously cited is that in this instance nearly the entire design was recut or corrected. If enough damage to the original blocks occurred due to overprinting a second edition would explain such dramatic differences.

Figure 44. Sharaku, Ebizo (First Edition).

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PLATE 2

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The key to the mystery of Sharaku lies in an idiosyncratic element found in all but one of his okubi-e designs. The identity of an artist can be arrived at in many ways, not just by a signature, whether gleamed from particular compositional elements, color use, the touch of the brush or any myriad of tell-tale traits, the form in which these clues are presented are unmistakable. Once exposed it is hard not to notice them. In most cases the artist unconsciously leaves these idiosyncrasies. And in the works of Sharaku they are as plain as the nose on an actor’s face, or more specifically the way in which Sharaku depicted the nose.

Figure 46. Sharaku, Full length actor portrait.

Figure 45. The Ukiyo-e nose

The nose was a feature drawn by every artist of the ukiyoe school. It was invariably formed in three or so distinctive strokes of the brush, beginning at the bridge and skating down and over to form the tip, followed by two dashes for the fold of the nostril. On occasion, a fourth mark would indicate the furthest nostril. That was the case for every nose—which is the calligraphic nature of the art—it was always the practice to close the tip, leaving only a minute break (if any) where the nostrils are adjoined to the flesh.

This is not the case with Sharaku. Illustrated on the opposite page are examples of the typical Sharaku nose.

Note the exaggerated gap between the tip and the nostril.

The only other example of the nose depicted in this way was for the Kappazuri-e (stencil printed picture) manufactured mostly in Osaka and Kyoto. Due to the nature of cutting the line art or key impression (omogata) of a true stencil print, it was necessary to leave generous

Figure 47. Shokosai, Kappazuri-e, c.1790

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gaps between brush strokes. This was a stylistic trait that only a designer trained in Kappazuri-e would adopt. Of the great stencil print designers of Sharaku’s day two artists stand out, Ryukosai and his pupil Shokosai. The works of these indisputable masters bear many similarities to Sharaku’s prints.

Figure 48. Kappazuri-e print, Nagahide, c.1810

That Sharaku might very well have studied under Shokosai and/or Ryukosai, or at least had some direct exposure to Kappazuri, remains to be proven. What is certain is that Sharaku appeared on the scene with the complete support of a reputable publisher (developing kirazuri, printing with a mica dust background), designed prints from first-to-last with unnerving mastery, was uncannily familiar with Kabuki actors during a period when half the great stages in Edo were forced to close (supporting the notion that Sharaku was himself an actor), and drew with a realism unknown to Ukiyo-e and so alien to the Edo public, as to be rejected with complete distain, that no sooner had Sharaku’s unique genius materialized than it vanished without trace.

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5 THE RISE AND FALL OF UKIYO-E

The polychrome print saw a meteoric rise, having come from its primitive beginnings through the various machinations of the worthiest of artistic endeavors and back again to the banal simplicity of a debased art form. A lot can be made of the death of Ukiyo-e, brought upon by the sudden collision of opposing cultures at the end of the Edo period. The short timeframe in which the full color print enjoyed its greatest success set unfavorable conditions on an otherwise incredibly dynamic medium.

The Golden Age of Ukiyo-e established an impossibly high standard with its level of excellence. If not for the invaluable contribution of a highly skilled artisan class, the polychrome print would never have evolved much beyond the graceful coloring and charmed subject matter of the benizuri-e of the classical period. More to the point, the unlimited possibilities the art showed in the area of collaboration elevated the individual designer’s works and created a need for skilled craftsman—a critical component of the wild success of Ukiyo-e.

For generations, expert carvers and printers (whose efforts were rarely acknowledged) saw to an exacting craft, indirectly expressing the vision of the print artist with astonishing accuracy. Their part in the perfection of the

Figure 49. Yoshitoshi, Warrior print, c.1866.

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most beautiful pictorial art ever created was undeniable.

By the time of the downfall, the artisan’s skills (as a whole) had even surpassed those of the designers. The degradation of the art of the print came not at the hands of the carvers and printers, nor the complacent designers blinded by the pursuit of fame, but at the hands of the greedy avaricious publishers, motivated by profit and doggedly fixed on progress.

If blame were to be assigned to the publishers it would in all fairness have started at the beginning. When the first full color calendar prints of Harunobu hit the shelves of the publisher stalls, the sensation they caused would have been immense. It was impossible to ignore the effect of the success the new technique promised and naive to imagine that the publishers might have been inclined to suppress the public’s excitement. The temptation always exists to lay blame on the public, a favorite scapegoat whose coarse manners and low breeding were no doubt a huge contributor to the loss of Ukiyo-e in the world. But in the end it was the publishers who ultimately enabled the shift from the exclusive and exquisite art form of Harunobu’s time to the widely distributed and overly accessible kitsch of the late 19th century.

Figure 51. Kunisada, Actor portrait, 1814

Figure 50. Publisher Stall

The lucrative profit that was gained from the production of the polychrome print guaranteed an eventual decline in standards. If general interest shifted away from a once

Figure 52. Kunichika, Ghost print,

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popular subject or style then profit suffered, and any print designer unfortunate enough not to adapt to the new fashions might find himself out of favor with the major publishing houses. In such a fast-paced market the manufacturing practices suffered as well. As demand outgrew the ability to supply a quality product, standards fell. It was becoming increasingly difficult to deliver superior goods to the widening Ukiyo-e audience of Edo’s exploding population, which was one of the largest cities of its day with over a million inhabitants.

Figure 53. Yoshitoshi, Newspaper print, c.1868

Figure 55. A European Etching, c.1800

Figure 56. Kuniyoshi, Chushingura Series, c.1840

The undeniable attraction of Western art had a demonstrative effect on both artist and public alike. More a seduction than an inspiration, a natural curiosity about a culture as alien as the Occident led to more than a few excesses. Much traditional Ukiyo-e would have looked rather anachronistic next to a newly released design influenced by Western art. An artist incapable or unwilling to change could quickly find himself to be out of favor with the public, due to the emergence of some novel approach that he failed to exploit.

Figure 54. Kuniyoshi, Warrior print, c.1820

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There was little room for failure in the business of popular prints. As in every aspect of Japanese society, it took great effort and discipline to succeed. The upper limits of the poverty threshold for the artisan class in 19th century Japan were marginal at best. By the time the polychrome print had reached its zenith there were innumerable publishers active and more designers than could be comfortably sustained. One or two more or less made no difference at all.

A brief list of some noted Ukiyo-e artists, all with shortlived careers, is as follows: Enkyo (c.1790 produced only a handful of prints) Katsushige (c.1790) Yasukiyo (date unknown but published by Juzabaro) Enshi (c. 1780) Kanamaro (c.1800) Kuninobu (c.1770 an early pupil of Harunobu) Naomasa (c.1830) Eiri (C.1790) Sharaku (c.1794-95 the most enigmatic of designers)

Figure57. Frank Llyod Wright Exhibition, 1908

The collecting of Ukiyo-e outside Japan had its origins with the Dutch, the only Europeans permitted to trade with Japan during the Edo period. The initial enthusiasm for polychrome prints was for the most part limited to a small number of curious-minded individuals.

Some of the more famous European collectors were: Siegfried Bing (1838-1905) Henri Vever (1854-1943) Jaques Doucet (1853-1929) Charles Gillot (1853-1903) Paul Cosson (1849-1926)

Figure 58. Yoshitoshi, Vertical Diptych, c.1890

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Jaques Doucet (1853-1929) Alexis Rouart (1839-1911) Count Issac de Camondo (1849-1911) Henri Riviere (1854-1951) Raimond Koechlin (1860-1931) With the end of isolationism and the Meiji restoration, Europe embraced the newly discovered arts of Japan.

Ukiyo-e, due to its pictorial nature, received an enormous amount of attention. A need for Western advisors in the Capital of Edo opened a dialogue between the early print collectors of Japan and those ambitious dealers of Europe concerned with all things Japanese. During this time Japonism was all the craze in Europe and America.

Figure 60. Yoshimori, Yokohama, 1872

In France and Germany, in particular, the growing interest in Ukiyo-e during the last decades of the 19th century resulted in some of the largest and finest collections in the world. The Japanese did not look upon the polychrome print as a fine art and it was not until as late as 1910, with the publication of Julius Kurth’s groundbreaking book, Sharaku, that the Japanese print was recognized for its artistic value and historic

Figure 59. Kunichika, Vertical Triptych, c.1892

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importance. The sudden interest in Ukiyo-e the world over, as well as its increasing value and focus on scholarly research, came as a shock in Japan. Not until the vast majority of the works of the Ukiyo-e school had left the country had the Japanese made an effort to retain their national treasure.

Figure 61. Julius Kurth, Sharaku, Second Edition, 1922

The brilliant flash that was the fall from grace for the brocade print has left an undeniable impression on the arts of our time. From the greatest achievements of the Golden Age to the lowest point of the Meiji Period, the works of the Ukiyo-e School have maintained a growing interest. The tenets of the Japanese print held as true in their day as they do now. There is a great satisfaction in sifting through countless prints of an infinite variety of styles, color, sizes, and subject matter to discover the implicit line or supple form of a hidden masterpiece.

These ephemerae—mere trifling pieces of paper—rise to the high standards of an important art form and are rightfully lauded as being the most beautiful pictorial art ever created.

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EPILOGUE

Ukiyo-e—as it has been handed down to us—is not what it was in its day. The functionality and contextual nuances of the color print have been forever lost, having gone the way of the samurai and shogun of feudal Japan. Only a vague idea of the past glory of Ukiyo-e has been preserved for posterity. Those few pristine examples that have been spared the ravages of time leave us with an insatiable wanting for more. Loss, due to fire, earthquakes and war, has made it all but impossible to ever hope to amass a great collection such as those acquired during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Perhaps the greatest loss to Ukiyo-e was the destruction of the treasured Kobayshi collection, consisting of over 100,000 prints (nearly equaling all the major museum collections in the world today) and representing every artist from all periods, some works being known by single impressions, lost to fire in the aftermath of the great earthquake of 1923. As regretful as the loss of first-rate examples of Ukiyo-e is, to a large degree enough has been preserved to give some idea of its achievement.

To the enthusiast and collector, the acquisition of an overlooked masterpiece or a rare example in pristine condition is a singular pleasure. And though demand far outweighs supply there are occasions when great works are released into the marketplace. Such opportunities might present themselves relatively often if money were no object. Less frequently, though commonly enough, an excellent design circumvents the established channels and is made available for little cost to a well-informed collector. Ukiyo-e, as a whole, was a widely distributed art form, held in high regard by only a small portion of the populace. Due to its ephemeral nature, little of the enormous output of Japanese prints exists today. Enough of a quantity of prints has survived to warrant great interest, yet the poor quality of those works that have been preserved detracts from the experience of the art form as a whole. In its way, the deprecation of Ukiyo-e has helped to maintain the popular nature that the print enjoyed during the Edo period, and until very recently, has kept it in the hands of the enthusiast and away from the high valuation of museums and auction houses.

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BOOK PLATES

SUKENOBU Kyoto 1671-1750 Bijin with Letter Ehon Asakayama 1730 Chubon size Hand-colored monochrome woodblock print A classic example of a beauty from the Yoshiwara is depicted. The print is an early bijin-ga, a favorite subject of Ukiyo-e, and one of Sukenobu’s most progenerative images. It comes from the famous Ehon Asakayama.

The page was hand-colored, possibly for a deluxe edition.

The colors would most likely have been selected by the publisher and applied by artisans, not the designer.

Sukenobu influenced every major artist that followed. As one of the earliest designers to explore naturalism, he pointed the way for future Ukiyo-e. All later representations of a profile view (Okubi-e) are in some way derivative of this single image.

PLATE 3

HARUNOBU Edo 1725-1770 Bijin with Ehon Ehon Yoshiwara Bijin Awase 1770 Chubon size Polychrome woodblock print A girl reading by Harunobu is shown. It is from the great Ehon Yoshiwara Bijin Awase.

The five-volume collection of 166 beauties is the earliest example of bijin to be printed in book form using the new full-color print process. Each of the portraits is accompanied by a haiku poem.

The refinement and charm of the Harunobu type set an early precedence in Ukiyo-e. He was the first to produce the full color print and is considered one of the great classical masters.

PLATE 4

BUNCHO Edo 1764-1796 Actor Portrait Ehon Butai-Ogi 1770 Chubon size Polychrome woodblock print One of the more than 100 actor portraits from the famous Ehon Butai-Ogi is illustrated.

The three-volume collection of portraits was produced in collaboration between the two designers, Buncho and Shuncho. Ehon Butai-Ogi is celebrated for its naturalistic depictions of actors and the exceptional draftsmanship of its designers.

The portraits share stylistic similarities and are some of the finest bust portraits in Ukiyo-e. Each actor is cleverly integrated into a fan motif.

PLATE 5

SHIGEMASA Edo 1739-1818 Drummer Boy Boys Playing Music c.1770s Oban size Polychrome woodblock print Seen here is an early oban size broad sheet by the great Shigemasa. The subject is five musicians, all boys with various instruments.

Shigemasa often left his work unsigned, which is the case in the present example. Due to this discrepancy his works are little known, even to collectors.

Koryusai made similar designs, all bearing a close resemblance to this example and published at around the same date. It is difficult to tell if it was Koryusai who influenced Shigemasa or Shigemasa who influenced Koryusai. The designs are of the same subjects though stylistically different. What is certain is that Kiyonaga and Eisen copied Shigemasa’s designs very closely at a later date, making only slight alterations to the figures and style of Shigemasa’s originals.

PLATE 6

SHIGEMASA Edo 1739-1818 Boy with Sumo Toy Boys Playing with Toys c.1770s Oban size Polychrome woodblock print Like in the previous plate, here is an unsigned, full-color, oban size sheet by Shigemasa.

The design depicts a boy holding up a sumo fan with figures. Presumably the fan and figures are some kind of toy. It comes from an early series of full-size color prints, all showing children playing with toys of all sorts.

The line and composition of this classic print shares many similarities to the drummer boy in the previous design, though the color scheme and robust quality of the rendering lend more of a luxurious and playful, even picturesque, feel to the otherwise austere design.

PLATE 7

SHUNSHO/SHIGEMASA Edo 1729-1792 Group of Bijin Outdoors Seiro Bijin Awase Sogata Kagami 1776 Double ehon pages Polychrome woodblock print The example here and in the next plate is from the ehon, Seiro Bijin Awase Sogata Kagami, considered the most beautiful illustrated book ever created.

Both Shunsho and Shigemasa contributed designs. The ehon was published in three volumes; the first part is generally accepted as having been illustrated by Shunsho, the second part by Shigemasa.

Each double page illustration depicts groups of bijin in the Yoshiwara busy at various pursuits. The artists strove for stylistic unity, making it very difficult to distinguish between the illustrations.

PLATE 8

SHUNSHO/SHIGEMASA Edo 1739-1818 Bijin at a Well Seiro Bijin Awase Sogata Kagami 1776 Double ehon pages Polychrome woodblock print The example here and on the preceding page is from the ehon, Seiro Bijin Awase Sogata Kagami, considered the most beautiful illustrated book ever created.

Both Shunsho and Shigemasa contributed designs. The ehon was published in three volumes; the first part is generally accepted as having been illustrated by Shunsho, the second part by Shigemasa.

Each double page illustration depicts groups of bijin in the Yoshiwara busy at various pursuits. The artists strove for stylistic unity, making it very difficult to distinguish between the illustrations.

PLATE 9

EIZAN Edo active 1800-1829 Tiger Nature Subject c.1820 (Kakamono-e) Double oban size Polychrome woodblock print The animal/nature print in Japan is derivative of the Chinese school of painting, as is much of the synthesis of Ukiyo-e.

The kakamono-e (hanging picture) depicted in the following plate is of a tiger by Eizan and is acknowledged as one of the artist’s animal print master works.

The kakamono-e print is comprised of two vertical oban size sheets and was intended to emulate a hanging scroll.

The long format broadened the scope of the nearly square composition in Ukiyo-e (much as the pillar print had), lending itself perfectly to the animal/nature genre.

PLATE 10

KUNITORA Edo c.1804-1830 Sunset at Awazu Views of Lake Biwa c.1820 Chuban size Polychrome woodblock print The distinctive style in this small postcard-like landscape is typical of Kunitora and leaves the viewer satisfied with its overall pleasingly quaint and pastoral sense of color and line.

Kunitora was a pupil of Toyokuni and produced very few designs. The view in this print borrows heavily from Hokusai, whose earlier uki-e (perspective picture) prints undoubtedly influenced its design.

An incredibly modern sensibility pervades the picture.

The rolling hills serve as an effective device, tying together the background and foreground while not obstructing the illusion of depth. Furthermore, the establishment of the plains by the use of the rolling hills excites the otherwise conventional use of perspective created by the stonewall vanishing in the distance.

PLATE 11

EISEN Edo 1789-1851 Bijin and Temple Mirror of the Ages c.1820s Oban size Polychrome woodblock print This design of a bijin is an example of an aizuri-e (blue picture) by Eisen, the designer recognized for the innovation. He himself wrote that he was influenced by designs on ceramics imported from China.

The bijin-ga illustrated is from a surreptitious series of courtesans standing before a screen with a circular landscape motif in the background. The original design in this series, titled Mirror of the Ages, is considered to be the first bijin-ga printed in the aizuri-e style.

The total number of prints in the series is unknown, but examples can be found that were released as full-color prints. No publisher seal exists in this broad sheet, suggesting that it is such an example.

PLATE 12

HIROSHIGE Edo 1797-1858 The Kumano Shrine Famous Places in Edo 1853 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print Similar to the aforementioned Eisen print, the landscape design in the following plate by Hiroshige was published years before in full color for a larger series entitled Famous Places in Edo. It is not known how many prints from the original series were reissued as blue prints, but with the exception of a few fan prints, the aizuri-e style print was unusual for Hiroshige.

The print here was given the lengthy title, The Kumano Shrine and the Pond of the Twelve Shrines at Tsunohazu in Yotsuya, and was published by the original publisher of the Famous Places in Edo series on the 9th month of Kaei 6 (1853). A wintry impression is had due to being printed in blue unlike the more summery feel of the original coloring.

PLATE 13

KUNIYOSHI Edo 1797-1861 Bijin in a Landscape Bijin Triptych c.1840 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The aizuri-e (blue picture) style print was explored by many of the artists of the decadent period. Even the great Hokusai published his most celebrated series, 36 Views of Mount Fuji, as aizuri-e prints.

The Kunyoshi print depicted here is from the triptych illustrated below. Like most Ukiyo-e artists, Kuniyoshi produced few aizuri-e prints. The subject is of three beauties strolling in a pastoral landscape and is typical of Kuniyoshi’s work at the time, though he was most famous for his warrior prints.

PLATE 14

EISEN Edo 1789-1851 Bijin and Temple Mirror of the Ages c.1820s Oban size Polychrome woodblock print Another Eisen blue print, though not a true aizuri-e, as the key block is printed in black. A true aizuri-e has a blue key block overprinted in various shades of “Prussian Blue� an imported alkaline color that replaced the organic cauliflower blue of earlier Ukiyo-e. A red color block is often introduced in order to balance out the composition as well as set off the design.

The Oiran shown here in shades of blue is accompanied by her two young Maiko (Trainees) and wears the latest and most fashionable attire. In fact, the woodblock print served as an ideal place to advertise for businesses of every ilk, from the green houses of the Yoshiwara to restaurants and cloth merchants or on occasion even product placement.

PLATE 15

EIZAN Edo active 1800-1829 Bijin Hanazome of the Ogiya c.1810 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The courtesan Hanazome of the Ogiya is seen here with her writing paraphernalia. She prepares a scroll for a letter, or more likely, a poem.

The beauties of the green houses were trained in a variety of disciplines, such as music, poetry, singing, and painting, all of which were a crucial part of life in the Yoshiwara. The more accomplished and refined the tastes and skills of a courtesan the greater was her desirability in the eyes of her respective clients.

And though the courtesan Hanazome was a beauty, as is attested to by her large almond-shaped eyes, her youth and good looks played only a minor role in the secret of her success.

PLATE 16

HIROSHIGE Edo 1797-1858 The 5th Month Other Names of the Five Seasonal Festivals 1848 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print Bijin-ga, or beauty pictures, those idyllic portrayals of the flowers in the green houses of the Yoshiwara, were infrequently designed by Hiroshige. The landscape by far was the artist’s subject of choice.

As a draftsman Hiroshige lacks the powers and skills of such noted artists as Hokusai and Utamaro, but as a colorist he is without equal. How much of his input can be attributed to the coloring of his designs can only be speculated upon. When seen as a raw key block, absent of all color, his landscapes seem to lack a great deal. If one were to take into consideration the great popularity he enjoyed then it might be presumed that he had a more than usual say as to a print’s end result.

PLATE 17

KUNIYOSHI Edo 1797-1861 Praying in a Boat Women as Benkei 1844 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The bijin portrait reached its zenith with Utamaro in the late 18th century and was further adapted by artists of the decadent period. In this print from the series Women as Benkei (Shuzoroi onna Benkei), a fashionable beauty unabashedly portrays the Japanese hero, Saito no Musashido Benkei. The girl prays in a riverboat, parroting a popular scene from Benkei’s life; she wears a checkered pattern, a pattern associated with the hero.

Kuniyoshi’s brushwork lends itself to the pious and vulnerable quality of the scene and is wholly unlike the aloof and inaccessible beauties of Utamaro’s day. The decorative effect of the design is distinct; the bijin’s dress, her pose and hairstyle, and the awkwardness of her environment, all date the print to the decadent period.

PLATE 18

HIROSHIGE Edo 1797-1858 Rope-Hanging Pine at Senzoku no ike One Hundred Famous Views of Edo 1856 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The following vertical landscape print (oban tate-e) is from Hiroshige’s last great series, One Hundred Famous Views of Edo (Meisho Edo Hyakkei). In actuality the series totaled 119 prints, plus the table of contents page, and was originally issued in serialized form and grouped together by the four seasons.

Hiroshige designed the series during the last years of his life, with four inferior designs being executed by one of the artist’s pupils, his son-in-law, Shigenobu, who would take the name Hiroshige upon his master’s death. One Hundred Famous Views of Edo remains the culminating achievement of Hiroshige’s career, surpassing even his celebrated 53 Stations on the Tokaido Road.

The print represented here, numbered 110 and titled Rope-Hanging Pine at Senzoku no ike (Senzoku no ike Kesakakematsu), was one of the earliest prints in the series. The “Rope-Hanging Pine” refers to the Buddhist priest, Nichiren, who once stopped by Senzoku Pond to rest and hung his robe on a nearby pine.

PLATE 19

SADAFUSA Edo active 1825-1850 Bijin Beauty and Landscape c.1830 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print Sadafusa was a pupil of Kunisada before Kunisada took the name Toyokuni and became the head of the Utagawa School. As a designer, Sadafusa enjoyed a distinguished career covering a broad range of subjects, all in the style of his master.

A beauty of the Yoshiwara is depicted in the following plate. Her beauty is being compared to a popular local, a common device used during several periods of prohibition when the depiction of courtesans for the sake of advertising and solicitation of the green houses was prohibited.

Bijin-ga was one of Sadafusa’s specialties, though in the current example he exceeds our expectations, adding something of a softness and suggestive air to an otherwise typical beauty print.

PLATE 20

SADAHIDE Edo 1807-1873 Three Beauties in a Landscape c.1820 Triptych-Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The following plate is a fine example of a triptych by another student of Kunisada. Of his many pupils Sadahide stands out, though none surpassed their master, and Sadahide was no exception, adhering closely to the precepts of the Utagawa School.

Within those confines Sadahide designed a few memorable prints, mostly in the musha-e category. The triptych (three oban size sheets combined to form a single image) was one of his preferred formats.

Of Sadahide’s few masterworks this bijin-ga is one.

Particular attention is often given to the furthest righthand sheet, though as a whole the picture is tied in beautifully by the otherwise conventional, albeit dramatic, use of a strong light source.

PLATE 21

KUNIYOSHI Edo 1797-1861 Tominomori Sukeemon Masakata Portraits of the Faithful Samurai of True Loyalty 1853 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print A classic Samurai portrait by Kuniyoshi is depicted.

Kuniyoshi was the leading print designer of Musha-e of his day. The series, Portraits of the Faithful Samurai of True Loyalty, was never completed, only a dozen or more of the probable 47 designs exists, several of which are only know to us by there preliminary drawings from unpublished designs.

Tominomori Sukeemon Masakata was one of the Ronin from the classic story of the Chushingura. He has his sword drawn, having been made aware of the approach of his enemy by the sound of a warning bell. The pointed finger and full frontal portrayal of the samurai’s features are fine examples of Kuniyoshi’s unexpected use of a more Western style in his designs. The series as a whole employs many such contrivances to heighten the overall dramatic effect.

PLATE 22

KUNIYOSHI Edo 1797-1861 Bloody Actors Untitled Actor Series c.1840 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print Kuniyoshi made his mark with the musha-e print redefining the genre with a wild and fantastic use of color and composition. Throughout the designer’s illustrious career, he exploited the particular talent he had for integrating seemingly incompatible elements into his pictures often resulting in surprisingly balanced if not at times profane broad sheets.

Whether it be the Chinese aspect of his early musha-e, or the emulation of Western print techniques, to foreshortening and the use of shadows, Kuniyoshi seems to always have the element of surprise on his side. It was his genius to design his prints with a kind of perverse pleasure; bring together disparate components that react in the most volatile and unpredictable of ways.

PLATE 23

HIROSHIGE Edo 1797-1858 Soga Brothers The Revenge of the Soga Brothers 1847 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The Revenge of the Soga Brothers is a tragic tale of honor and vengeance. Along with the Chushingura (or The 47 Ronin) it was one of the most frequently depicted legends in Ukiyo-e. Hiroshige infrequently designed such a lofty figure-driven series as this.

In total, The Revenge of the Soga Brothers consists of 38 sheets, all depicting various key points in the play. In the following plate (one of the last scenes) a brother has caught up to his enemy, who disguises himself as a cowering old woman.

PLATE 24

KUNISADA Edo 1786-1864 Ghost with a Fowl Tokaido Intermediate Stations 1852 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The ghost print generally falls into a similar category as the warrior print, invariably adapting myths and legends into the world of Ukiyo-e with a characteristically violent and unflinching taste for the macabre and the bizarre.

Here the famous actor and Sumo wrestler Nakamura Utaemon is depicted in the role of a ghoul having just satisfied his bloodlust on an unsuspecting fowl. The audience is left with the impression that the ghost’s spirited appetite for flesh might not be totally satisfied with the wanting flavor of the feathered variety.

PLATE 25

YOSHITOSHI Edo 1839-1892 Smokey 32 Aspects of Women 1888 (2nd state) Oban size Polychrome woodblock print Toward the end of his life, Yoshitoshi tackled a series depicting the 32 Aspects of Women, bringing all his experience as a print designer to bear, producing one of the greatest masterworks of the Meiji period.

In the following plate—one of the most popular sheets in the series—a beauty contends with the smoke from an unfortunate mishap with a coal brazier. She is no doubt meant to represent the demure yet frazzled type of woman who, at the slightest provocation, is excited and impassioned to the point of losing control.

The first edition of the series was issued over the course of several years. The second state of the first edition has a variant color scheme in the title cartouche. Later editions are recognized by the single colored title cartouche and the lack of a printer’s signature.

PLATE 26

YOSHITOSHI Edo 1839-1892 I Want to See it in My Dreams Collections of Desires 1868 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The beauty seen here is typical of the Yoshitoshi type.

She is shown taking time in her daily routine to daydream and is depicted with all the expectedly balanced, hyper-realistic, and decorate style of the Meiji period.

The naturalism of her forearm and hand, albeit awkwardly placed, as well as the details of her dress and the setting, play beautifully off of the harsh color scheme and conventional composition.

Yoshitoshi made a name for himself for exactly the effect created by this lovely design. It can be said that Yoshitoshi was single handedly responsible for the incorporation in Ukiyo-e of traditional yet modern sensibilities.

PLATE 27

YOSHITOSHI Edo 1839-1892 Moni Bomaru 100 Warriors 1868 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print In the celebrated Musha-e series that this print belongs to, every possible sort of bloodletting is depicted with a distinctive relish attributable to the one-and-only mind of Yoshitoshi.

The fact that the artist went mad and was hospitalized during a particularly violent and tumultuous period in Japanese history speaks volumes when interpreting the more gruesome designs in the artist’s oeuvre. That is not to say that in these overly dramatized broad sheets there is nothing worth exploring and that artistically they lack merit. Quite the contrary, for they are compelling works that demand our interest if one is willing to look beyond the spectacle of it all, for what emerges are highly crafted, well balanced expressions of the angst and confusion of the age.

PLATE 28

YOSHITOSHI Edo 1839-1892 Bijin and Mouse Mirror of Beauties Past and Present 1875 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print Further establishing the distinctive style of the Yoshitoshi type, the following bijin showcases the designer’s more excessive nature.

The decadence evident in the works of Eisen, Kunisada, and Kuniyoshi (Yoshitoshi’s master) is amplified here with Yoshitoshi’s heavy-handed use of coloring and composition and the print’s ridiculous subject matter.

Yoshitoshi’s enthusiasm goes beyond conventionality in this design, broaching all artistic merit as it dangerously approaches kitsch.

PLATE 29

KUNICHIKA Edo 1835-1900 Bijin Mirror of Flowering Manners and Customs 1878 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The opening of Japanese ports and the end of Sukoku (the officially adopted policy of seclusion) thrust Japan into a modern light and away from traditional practices.

Trade with the West impacted Ukiyo-e in many ways, as it had in almost every walk of life. Even before the Meiji Restoration, the cultural exchange with Dutch traders at Yokohama exposed the Japanese to Western ideas and products. The introduction of alkaline pigments and use of such artistic contrivances as perspective, chiaroscuro, and realism in Ukiyo-e made a lasting impression on the artists of the decadent period.

The acidic crimson color found in prints produced after 1868 is referred to as “Meiji Red.� Its over-use is a distinctive trait, as well as the awkward realism of the art of the Meiji period. In the following print from the series Mirror of Flowering Manners and Customs, Kunichika has depicted the impact of Western manners on traditional Japanese women.

PLATE 30

HIROSHIGE Edo 1797-1858 Fuji Over the Yoshiwara 100 Views of Edo 1856 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The triumphant Hundred Views of Edo was Hiroshige’s final series, the crowning achievement to a long career already distinguished by some of the greatest masterpieces of Ukiyo-e.

As the undisputed champion of the landscape print, surpassing even the great Hokusai when it came to depicting local scenes and popular sights, Hiroshige reveals his unique talent for solving the many pictorial challenges of designing such a large series.

In Fuji Over the Yoshiwara the sacred mountain loams predominantly over a crowded main street of the famed Pleasure Quarter of Edo. The single point perspective effectively balances the composition focusing the audience’s attention away from the mundane goings-on of work-a-day city life to the majestic beauty and permanence of nature.

PLATE 31

HIROSHIGE Edo 1797-1858 Station 5 Hodogaya, Shimmachi Bridge 53 Stations of the Tokaido Road 1833 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The color print illustrated next distinguishes itself with its strategic use of abstract shapes and a banded picture plain. The celebrated 53 Stations of the Tokaido Road was Hiroshige’s first great landscape series and collectively his most consistent work, comprised entirely of masterpieces.

Collies convey a Palanquin across the Shimmachi Bridge at Hodogaya, a small village that, like so many on the road from Kyoto to Edo, subsisted off wealthy travelers and common journey men supplying them with a place to rest, provisions, sights and entertainment for the night.

A parade of villagers greets the approach of the travelers into the village, no doubt eager to trade goods and arrange accommodations.

Of the many famous images from Hiroshige’s 53 Stations of the Toakaido Road the following is one of the greatest.

The harmony of the colors in the thatch roofed huts and the overlapping of their forms juxtaposed with the long horizontal bands of the river and sky make for a strong and memorable design.

PLATE 32

HIROSHIGE Edo 1797-1858 Station 15 Yoshiwara, Fuji from the Left 53 Stations of the Tokaido Road 1833 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print Yoshiwara (not to be confused with the red-light district of Edo) was the fifteenth station of the Tokaido Road. A group pushes through a thicket as Fuji looms in the distance. The Tokaido was a long and trying road, and the beauty of the landscape—in particular that of the renowned views seen from the various rest stops, or stations—made the trip worthwhile.

A good sense is had in this design of a hard journey being rewarded with success and the drive to push on and to achieve a goal at all costs. Hiroshige captures the spirit of the traveler, the strong will of those who adventure out in search of beauty and excitement. It was the point of this series to express exactly that idea, to impress the pastoral beauty of Japan upon the Edo populous and express the peoples’ unspoken desire to see the world and experience everything it had to offer.

PLATE 33

SHIGEMASA Edo 1739-1818 Hatakeyama and Kajiwara Musha Waraji (The Warrior’s Sandals) c.1790 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print Shigemasa, like all Ukiyo-e designers, was active as a book illustrator. Heroic tails were a favorite subject of the Japanese and popular with the print seeking public. In the album Musha Waraji, Shigemasa depicts many such heroic tales illustrating in full color the exploits of some of Japans most legendary warriors. So well received was the work that the publisher commissioned the artist to redesign the plates as oban size broadsheets.

One such design depicts the warriors Hatakeyama and Kajiwara. The enlargement of the work provided Shigemasa with the opportunity to elaborate on the design while maintaining the feeling and the composition of the original bookplate.

PLATE 34

TOYONOBU Edo 1711-1785 Court Lady with Knife Segawa Kikujiro in a Role c.1750 Hosoban size Polychrome woodblock print The benizuri-e of the classical period established an ideal for the future full color print and had an influence on Ukiyo-e throughout its long history. The basic methods of early print production allowed for a certain freedom of expression, a looseness of brushwork that gave clarity to the artistic approach of a design and defined the art in the minds of its practitioners for generations to come.

Toyonobu was one such early master that forged ahead with a style uniquely his own resulting in masterworks of extraordinary strength. Feminine beauty after Toyonobu would never be the same; the soft searching line of his masterful bijin and actor portraits established the naturalism of the Golden Age. If not for Toyonobu’s reluctance to break from the conventionality of his age he might very well have been as defining a designer as his pupil Harunobu or equally as innovative as the great Kiyonaga, who had single-handedly lifted Toyonobu’s style to great new heights.

PLATE 35

SHUNKO Edo 1743-1812 Bando Mitsugoro I Actor Portrait c.1780 Hosoban size Polychrome woodblock print The actor Bando Mitsugoro the first is depicted by Shunko, presented to the audience in the designer’s typical unabashed style. Many such designs were produced by the artist before the debilitating loss of his right arm. From there on in an awkwardness entered into Shunko’s draftsmanship and the resultant broad use of his brush redefined him as an artist.

The gilt fringe boarder in the present design was a luxurious devise often applied to color prints by early European collectors. In addition the original Japanese owner of this print inscribed the actor’s name above the portrait. The tradition of identifying the actor on the front of a print is derivative of theater playbills. In this particular case the inscription intrudes into the composition, a choice that otherwise is discordant with the aesthetic of the image. The motivation behind such an act of vandalism was one of clarity, as with a playbill the identity of the actor, his features often concealed behind makeup and costuming, overshadowed all other concerns. Such early customs demonstrate just how differently the intended audience of Ukiyo-e perceived the woodblock print then we do today.

PLATE 36

KIYONAGA Edo 1752-1815 Kintaro on Parade Untitled Series c.1790 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print Kintaro is a mythic figure, a wild boy and hero, whose foster-mother is a Yamauba. The Yamauba are depicted in Japanese folklore as “mountain nurses” who catch unsuspecting children and nurse them until which time she devours them.

Kintaro’s heroic exploits were many and varied, including such legendary feats as wrestling a giant carp and the simultaneous vanquishing of a black bear and an eagle.

Toward the end of Kiyonaga’s life (long after he had given up the designing of prints due to the popularity of Utamaro’s style) the artist would on occasion release a series of prints. The following Kintaro design is from such a rare series of prints. The total number of designs for the series is unknown, nor is there a title for the series. It is very likely that the individual prints were produced some time apart from one another. Twelve scenes are known in the series.

All the prints in this series depict the wild boy in the company of Oni, a term for devils, notorious for their mischievous nature. As is the case with all of Kiyonaga’s best designs a naturalistic rendering and dynamic composition accompany the broad and free brushwork of this mature and supremely confident masterwork.

Nothing of Utamaro’s style is felt in this design, as if the sagged master was behooved to create these designs in a vacuum completely unaware and blissfully ignorant of the onslaught of the decadent period.

PLATE 37

EISEN Edo 1789-1851 Bijin Portrait Fashionable Restaurants of the Day 1827 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The great teahouses and fashionable restaurants of Edo were as renowned for their sophistication and their elegance as they were for the beauty of their waitresses and the fashionable crowd that frequented them. The bijin depicted in this portrait is being associated with the opulence and luxury of a famous restaurant of the day.

Only the wealthiest and most privileged of men could patronize such an establishment and so too was such a beautiful and refined lady available to a select few.

Eisen contributed greatly to the advancement of the large head portrait. The characteristic women he chose to portray were painted as a modern strong-boned feminine type, yet the artist manages to lend a classical elegance to his designs while maintaining the dynamic element distinctly belonging to the late flowering of the decadent period.

PLATE 38

KUNIYOSHI Edo 1797-1861 Enshi and the Hunter Mirror of the 24 Paragons of Filial Piety 1840 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The next plate belongs to an unusual series entitled, Mirror of the 24 Paragons of Filial Piety, consisting of fourteen known prints. The series illustrates episodes in the lives of twenty-four individuals who went to extremes to honor their parents.

Throughout the series Kuniyoshi integrates figures into landscapes with consummate skill, treating the designs in a distinctly westernized style incorporating dramatic coloring, shadows, rendering of dress, etc. Nearly every aspect of the prints is emulative of the European etchings Kuniyoshi would have encountered in the curiosity shops of Edo. In the following design Enshi is seen disguised in a deerskin in order to capture a doe, which he planned to milk to cure his parents’ eye disease. Hidden in the deer herd, he was mistaken by a hunter and almost shot.

Similarly to the other designs in the series the subject of the print is stifled by the treatment of the picture and relegated to a perfunctory role. What would otherwise be a flaw is curiously exploited by the artist making a rather droll design provocative and intriguing.

PLATE 39

HOKUSAI Edo 176-1849 Moon Over the Sea Untitled Series c.1830 Quarter Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The aizuri-e style print had no greater practitioner than Hokusai. The artist’s famous 36 Views of Fuji is a triumphant example of the supple yet varied effects that are possible with the method of printing predominately in blue.

The brushwork and styles of the Tosa and Kano schools of painting influenced Hokusai throughout the artist’s long career. In the following plate the ink wash landscape paintings of the Tosa school is recognizable. Tosa was Japanese in its origin whereas Kano was Chinese. The Kano school was adopted by the Shoguns and Taso by the Emperor, both were strictly for the ruling class. Ukiyo-e was the art for the people and as such was shunned by the aristocracy.

Great masters such as Hokusai often bridged the gap that existed between the various artistic styles seamlessly incorporating Tosa and Kano with ease. Much can be found in the artist’s immense body of work that rises to the level of fine art regardless of the plebian nature of the art of the floating world.

PLATE 40

KUNISADA Edo 1786-1864 Bijin Portrait Shadow Pictures of an Auspicious Age 1844 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The excesses of the decadent period were best exploited and most interestingly expressed by Kunisada, one of the last great masters of the late Edo period. Frequently his designs walk a fine line between beauty and ugliness.

With unabashed skill Kunisada expertly employed every sort of contrivance, utilizing all the many devises of the Utagawa School.

In the present design, a bijin portrait from the aptly entitled series, Shadows Pictures of an Auspicious Age, the strong light source—often encountered in Ukiyo-e of the decadent period—is used to its fullest effect. This devise is greatly exploited in all the designs from the series, helping to break up the picture space and heighten the already dynamic composition while at the same time emphasizing the subject matter.

Over production is a hallmark of the Utagawa School— which Kunisada headed assuming the name of his master, Toyokuni—and yet despite the weaker artistic achievements of the late period, throughout his long career Kunisada consistently produced some of the greatest masterpieces of his age.

PLATE 41

EISEN Edo 1789-1851 Bijin and Boat Mirror of the Ages c.1820s Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The following plate is another fine example from the famous aizuri-e series Mirror of the A g e s . Printed primarily in shades of blue, the aizuri-e infatuated the Edo populous when first released and Eisen, the inventor of the aizuri-e technique, greatly profited from their production.

Mirror of the Ages, the first series to exploit the aizuri-e technique, was in fact not a series in the traditional sense, rather a single broadsheet was first released and with its success a slue of copycat prints followed. These copycat prints had been printed earlier in full color and all of them lack a publisher seal, as was often the case when a publisher reissued earlier designs.

PLATE 42

HIROSHIGE Edo 1797-1858 Station 1 Nihon-bashi 53 Stations of the Tokaido Road (Vertical Tokaido) 1855 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print Early on in his career Hiroshige approached the design of landscapes in the traditional horizontal format (yoko-e).

His great Tokaido series from 1833 was an enormous success and encouraged the designer to publish more landscape series. Many series followed, all designed utilizing a horizontal layout.

In 1855 Hiroshige produced a new series depicting the 53 stations of the Tokaido road, this time designing the prints in a vertical format (tate-e) and was met with great enthusiasm. From that point forward Hiroshige seldom went back to a horizontal layout.

Nihon-bashi was the first station of the Tokaido road, a hallmark of Edo and one of the most famous sights in all of Japan. In the print the residence of the Shogun can be seen in the background. Technically it was against the law to depict the castle and yet here the censor seems to have overlooked this small detail.

PLATE 43

HIROSHIGE Edo 1797-1858 Station 32 Arai, watashi-bune no zu 53 Stations of the Tokaido Road 1833 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The ferry at the 32nd Station of the Tokaido Road is depicted. Similar to the Shunko actor portrait this print has been embellished by a gilt boarder. On this occasion the gold edge was most likely added in the late 19th century by an entrepreneurial Japanese reseller and was intended to be offered framed and matted in the European fashion. In this way early Western collectors and travelers to Japan would be presented with a more familiar and desirable product and would pay higher prices than if sold as a loose print.

Well before Ukiyo-e was accepted as fine art, Japanese prints were thought of as trifling decorations, or at best as mere curiosities representative of a place and time long forgotten by the Japanese and of little interest to Europeans.

Of the many masterworks in the series this print is one.

Hiroshige incorporates both the landscape and figures in a capable and highly skilled manner. The deliberate composition of the design lends itself to abstraction with the authoritative overlapping and placement of the boats in the middle ground. Attention to detail should not be overlooked when viewing works of this quality. When seen as a whole the 53 Stations of the Tokaido Road firmly establishes Hiroshige as a master print maker.

PLATE 44

HIROSHIGE Edo 1797-1858 Cherry Blossoms on the Nakanomachi in the Yoshiwara Famous Sights of the Eastern Capital c.1830-44 Oban size Polychrome woodblock print The following yoko-e (horizontal landscape print) is from an exceptional series entitled Famous Sights of the Eastern Capital. Hiroshige has depicted the entrance gate on the Nakanomachi, the main street of the Yoshiwara (the redlight district of Edo), on an evening in the early spring when the cherry blossoms are in bloom and the pleasant weather is perfect for strolling.

A more idyllic image can hardly be imagined. The pastoral charm of the predominately blue coloring and balanced composition is only out-done by the poetic allure of the full moon that presides over the whole scene.

It is no wonder that this single image is one of Hiroshige’s most beloved and memorable early designs.

On few occasions had any designer achieved such harmony with so few compositional elements. What is being conveyed in this picture is accomplished in the supplest of ways, just barely hinting at the underlining pathos and bittersweet reminiscences of the more harsh reality of life in the pleasure quarter.

PLATE 45

YOSHITOSHI Edo 1839-1892 Yuigahama Famous Places Along the Tokaido Road 1863 Oban size polychrome woodblock print In 1193, Minamoto no Yoritomo, (the celebrated founder of the first Shogunate of Japan) set a crane free on Yuigahama beach in a ceremony called hojoe, which is a memorial service for animals meant for human consumption. In the ceremony birds and fish are released into ponds, the sky or woodlands.

This wonderful design, one of few landscapes created by Yoshitoshi, is part of a collaborative series of prints depicting famous places along the Tokaido road.

Produced relatively early on in the artist’s career, a constrained element lends balance to the upward movement in the print. That purposeful restraint holds the action back just long enough to establish tension between the release of the cranes across the picture space and the vertical format of the landscape. Note the delightful way in which the foremost cranes touch headto-toe from top-to-bottom forming an unbroken chain in the upper middle ground of the print.

PLATE 46

SADATORA Edo active 1820-1830s After the Bath Visit to the Seven Deities of the Eastern Capital c.1830 Oban size polychrome woodblock print The nude is rarely encountered in the broadsheet form and then often only partially nude, as is the case with this Sadatora bijin print. A glimpse of thigh or exposed breasts in Ukiyo-e was hardly a shock to an audience familiar with the shunga albums (sex manuals) wherein all sorts of lustful embraces are shown in an exaggerated and pornographic form.

Pictures such as this fall into the category of abuna-e (dangerous pictures) and serve to bridge the gap between the idyllic images approved by the censors and the overtly sexualized subject matter of shunga which were often privately commissioned and rarely signed by the artist.

PLATE 47

YOSHITOSHI Edo 1839-1892 6am The 24 Hours of the Yoshiwara 1880-81 Oban size polychrome woodblock print The celebrated series The 24 Hours of the Yoshiwara was an elaborate undertaking encompassing 24 designs of courtesans, each portrayed at different hours of the day, offering a rare glimpse at the life of a geisha in the green houses of the Yoshiwara.

This famous red-light district of Edo was sanctioned by the Tokugawa government, a city within a city it housed the professional entertainers of the renowned bordellos of Feudal Japan. A walled fortress built upon the reclaimed marshes of the capital city, the Yoshiwara exemplified the contradictive and complex system that existed during the Edo period. Often idealized, as it was in the present series, the popular depiction of courtesans and geisha rarely hinted at the hardships and suffering of these sad denizens of the sexual trade.

Here a courtesan secures a fashionable scarf, demurely wrapped around her head, as she prepares to take her leave from a nocturnal outing, having spent the night with a “regular� at some formal setting. Yoshitoshi depicts her as a happy soul with not a hint of the miserable conditions she was forced to endure since childhood, nor the suffering she experienced due to the nature of her trade.

PLATE 48

YOSHITOSHI Edo 1839-1892 Faithful Wife Eastern Pictures of heroic Women 1880 Oban size polychrome woodblock print The comparison of women was a common convention in the Japanese print throughout the Edo and Meiji periods.

In the series, Easter Pictures of Heroic Women, the favorite subject of faithful wives is explored. In each of the beauties portrayed is a wife or companion of some great warrior. Separated by warring and death these dutiful women cling to an article or object attributed to their personal sacrifice.

A fallen samurai’s wife is shown in the following print, remaining loyal to the memory of her love. Yoshitoshi depicts her clinging longingly to the hereditary sword of her husband’s noble family. Hers is an old story, told many times over, representative of the dated convention of all that is noble and good in women.

PLATE 49

YOSHITOSHI Edo 1839-1892 Looking Shy 32 Aspect of Women 1888 Oban size polychrome woodblock print The 32 Aspects of Women was a hallmark of the Meiji period flaunting not only the incredible skill of the printers but also displaying the penchant the public had for tradition. Few print series surpass the 32 Aspects in forcefulness and originality. And though there are some reservations concerning the many excesses of the series, there is unanimous praise for Yoshitoshi’s excellent draftsmanship and superior sense of composition.

To a large degree the modern element of each of the portraits is successfully integrated into the designs. A seamless melding of “yesterday and today” is had and an overall balance is achieved regardless of such pompous and drastic elements such as drafts of smoke and garish yellow plaid kimonos.

PLATE 50

IKARI-E ANGRY PICTURES

GLOSSARY Abuna-e

Bokashizuri

Hashira-e

Dangerous picture. Erotic images or suggestive pictures.

Shading. The gradation of colors when printing a woodblock. S e e fukibokashi.

Post (pillar) picture. A long narrow print, hung on posts. The format was approximately 70 x 20 cm.

Bushi (or samurai)

Hazama-ban

Warrior. Member of the warrior class of the Tokugawa period (16031867). They were followed in rank by the farmers (no), artisans (ko), and merchants (sho).

Portrait format. Approximately 33 x 23 cm.

Aizuri-e Blue print. Polychrome print with indigo or indigo shading as its main color. Also known as “ai-e” (indigo picture).

Aragoto The heroic strong-man role in kabuki theater.

Atenashi-bokashi

Chuban Medium format. Approximately 29.3 X 19 cm.

Hosoban Narrow format. Approximately 3035.5 X 15.5 cm.

Ichimai-e Single sheet prints.

A technique used when no particular shading was required. Liquid was mixed with the ink and allowed to flow over the surface of the picture.

The technique was often used for clouds and areas of water.

“Eastern capital.” The seat of the Tokugawa shogunate from 1603 to 1867. The original name of presentday Tokyo.

Beni-e

Ehon

Crimson picture. The further development of the tan-e print, in which crimson replaces vermilion as the main color. Other colors include indigo and yellow.

Picture book. Books of pictures illustrating a wide variety of subjects.

Edo Ichimonji-bokashi A technique whereby the top half of a picture is shaded. lta-bokashi

Benigirai-e “Beni (red)-no-like picture.” A form of polychrome print in which red is not used. The chief colors are blue, grey and violet.

Benizuri-e Crimson print. An early polychrome print using different blocks for different colors, primarily beni (red) and green.

Bijin-ga Pictures of beautiful women, mostly courtesans, but occasionally girls from teahouses, etc.

Fukibokashi A printing technique. Part of the inked block is wiped with a damp cloth before the print is taken. The result is color gradation.

Geisha Girls trained in singing and dancing; she was employed to entertain guests, though her services were not necessarily of a sexual nature.

Hanga Print. The general term for a woodblock print.

Hangi Printing block.

A printing technique whereby the part of the woodblock to be shaded is abraded and smoothed. It was particularly popular for the shadows in the folds of garments.

Jitsubushi “Filling-color” print. A technique whereby leftover white areas are inked in. The colors used may be yellow, indigo or crimson.

Kabuki “Song-dance-art.” Popular theater in Japan, which developed towards the end of the I7th century. All the parts are played by male actors. More important than the personality of the actor was his stock portrayal of the character in question. For this reason, the actors’ faces in the kabuki were painted in a manner specified for the particular role.

IKARI-E ANGRY PICTURES

Kakemono

Motsukotsuho

COVER ILLUSTRATION

Hanging picture. Two oban size prints in vertical format.

Unlined print. Technique whereby no contour lines are drawn around the areas of color.

(Detail)

Musha-e

Edo 1786-1868 Angry Drunk Three Types of Drinkers c.1820 Oban size

KIYOMINE

Karazuri Blind printing. A technique whereby the paper was pressed against an uninked block, creating an embossed image.

Warrior picture. Portrayals of bushi.

Naga-oban

Kento

Long format. Extra-long oban.

Register mark. The mark that indicated exactly how the paper was to be placed in relation to the block in the second and subsequent color printings to ensure the perfect alignment of the different colored areas.

Nishiki-e

Kimedashi or kimekomi Printing technique whereby the block was pressed into the paper, leaving an impression of the lines and contours.

Woodblock color print. Brocade picture. Polychrome print. A further development of the benizuri-e.

No Classical dance and song drama, performed in masks and costumes.

Oban Large format. Approximately 39.5 X 26.8 cm.

Kimono Obi “Wear-thing.” Garment worn by both men and women, and kept together at the waist (in the case of women) or at the hips (in the case of men) by an obi.

Sash for use with kimono. Men knot their narrow obi at the side.

Women’s obi are tied in an elaborate bow at the back, or, in the case of courtesans, at the front.

Kira-e or kirakake Okubi-e Mica print. A priming technique whereby two blocks are prepared for the background. One is inked with the basic color, while the other is coated with bone-glue or paste. After the print has been taken, mica is scattered on the paper while it is still wet, and the surplus shaken off.

Portrayal of faces in profile or obliquely from the side.

Onnagata Player of female parts. Kabuki actors specializing in women’s roles.

Maiko

Ooban

Dancing girl. Young geisha whose training was not yet complete.

Extra-large format.

NOTE

All the color plates presented in this publication are part of the author’s personal collection. The figures and plates are in the public domain. For free access to high definition images of the plates please contact the author at edoukiyoe.com@gmail.com.

IKARI-E/ANGRY PICTURES