Kazimiera
11-13-2017, 05:28 PM
14 Pictures of The Floating World
Source: https://www.japan-talk.com/jt/new/ukiyo-e
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/header/Takiyasha-the-Witch-and-the-Skeleton-Spectre-5096-658.jpg
Ukiyo-e, literally "pictures of the floating world", are a genre of Japanese woodblock print that were mass produced in color beginning in the 1760s. Being mass produced, the goal was to sell as many copies as possible and ukiyo-e typically depict the popular topics of the day such as geisha, kabuki actors, myths and contemporary events. They were often produced in a large series of up to 100 prints with a common theme.
In the 1850s, Japan's markets suddenly open to the west and cheap imports flooded the country. One of the first things that Japan successfully exported to Europe were ukiyo-e prints. At the time, Europe had never seen anything like these highly stylized comic-like artworks. Many well known European artists were greatly influenced by ukiyo-e. For example, Van Gogh was a collector and he completed several works styled after famous ukiyo-e.
With time, ukiyo-e faced increased competition from modern magazines. European art greatly influenced Japan and new generations of Japanese artists experimented with western techniques. It's often said that ukiyo-e peaked in the 1880s. In recent years, there has been renewed interest in ukiyo-e style art and woodblock printing. As with so many traditional Japanese art forms, ukiyo-e is alive and thriving. The following are examples of famous ukiyo-e.
1. The Great Wave Off Kanagawa
Artist: Hokusai
Series: Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji
Year: 1830
The Great Wave Off Kanagawa is one of Japan's most iconic artworks. It's often mistaken for a tsunami but it's in fact a large sea wave. This area of Kanagawa is popular with surfers today.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/header/Great-Wave-Off-Kanagawa-980.jpg
2. Otani Oniji II
Artist: Toshusai Sharaku
Year: 1794
A kabuki actor by the name of Otani Oniji II. Ukiyo-e has a long standing traditional of exaggerating the eyes of kabuki actors.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/midthumb/Otani-Oniji-II-Toshusai-Sharaku-1794-980.jpg
3. Red Fuji Southern Wind Clear Morning
Artist: Hokusai
Series: Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji
Year: 1830
When conditions are just right the sun can turn Mount Fuji a bright red color. The stylized form of this print is often cited as a inspiration for the Impressionist movement in Europe decades later.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/header/Red-Fuji-Southern-Wind-Clear-Morning-980.jpg
4. Inaba Mountain Moon
Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
Series: One Hundred Views of the Moon
Year: 1885
A depiction of a historical event. In the late 16th century a little known peasant rose to become the warlord leader of Japan. His name was Toyotomi Hideyoshi. One of the great moments of his military career was discovering a secret path to the impregnable Saito Castle atop Mount Inaba. He took the castle with only 7 men.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/Inaba-Mountain-Moon-by-Yoshitoshi-980.jpg
5. The Cry Of The Fox
Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
Series: One Hundred Views of the Moon
Year: 1886
A well known story from a comic interlude between kabuki plays. A fox appears as a beautiful woman to a farmer to ask him to stop hunting foxes. The farmer agrees. As the fox departs he begins to morph back to his original form. The story ends with a terrible cry from the fox. He was caught in a trap as he departed. Foxes play a prominent role in Japanese mythology in which they often shapeshift to human form.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/midthumb/Cry-of-The-Fox-Yoshitoshi-980.jpg
6. The 36th Station of The Tokaido: Akasaka
Artist: Hokusai
Series: The 53 Stations of the Tokaido
Year: 1832
In the Edo-era Akasaka in Tokyo was a large pleasure district.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/header/Tokaido-36-Akasaka-980.jpg
7. Daruma Meditating
Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
Series: One Hundred Views of the Moon
Year: 1886
Daruma was the founder of Zen Buddhism. According to legend, he meditated for 9 years in a cave before he reached enlightenment. He stayed so long in the cave that his limbs fell off.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/midthumb/Daruma-Meditating-980.jpg
8. Daimotsu Bay Moon
Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
Series: One Hundred Views of the Moon
Year: 1886
The warrior-priest Musashibo Benkei pacifies the angry spirits of the fallen Taira clan warriors. From the Tale Of The Heike, a mythical account of the war between two clans for control of Japan in the late 12th century.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/midthumb/Daimotsu-kaijo-no-tsuki-by-Yoshitoshi-980.jpg
9. The Fever
Artist: Yoshitoshi
Series: The Fever of Taira no Kiyomori
Year: 1883
Taira No Kiyomori was a 12th century military leader known for his ruthlessness. He had a great fever prior to his death in which he was haunted by visions of his victims waiting for him in the afterlife.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/header/The-Fever-980.jpg
10. The 45th Station of The Tokaido: Shono
Artist: Hokusai
Series: The 53 Stations of the Tokaido
Year: 1832
This print shows what travel was like on Japan's first road: The Tokaido.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/header/Tokaido-45-Shono-by-Hokusai-980.jpg
11. Dawn Moon Of Shibaimachi
Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
Series: One Hundred Views of the Moon
Year: 1886
Customers head home in the morning after a night in the Shibaimachi theatre district.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/midthumb/---Theater-District-Dawn-Moon--Shibaimachi-no-akatsuki-5096-117.jpg
12. Snow
Artist: Yoshitoshi
Series: Snow, Moon and Flowers
Year: 1890
The kabuki actor Onoe Baiko.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/header/Snow-980.jpg
13. Moon of Kintaro's Mountain
Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
Series: One Hundred Views of the Moon
Year: 1886
Kintaro is a mythical Japanese superhero who was raised by a ghost mother on a mountain. As a child Kintaro had only animals as friends. Here he organizes a sumo match between a rabbit and a monkey.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/midthumb/Moon-of-Kintaros-Mountain-by-Yoshitoshi-980.jpg
14. Omori Notices A Demon
Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
Series: 36 Ghosts
Year: 1889
A Samurai is asked to carry a beautiful woman across a stream. As he crosses he notices demon horns in her reflection in the water. He grabs his sword and cuts her down. Based on an old Japanese ghost story.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/midthumb/Omori-notices-a-demon-by-Yoshitoshi-980.jpg
Source: https://www.japan-talk.com/jt/new/ukiyo-e
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/header/Takiyasha-the-Witch-and-the-Skeleton-Spectre-5096-658.jpg
Ukiyo-e, literally "pictures of the floating world", are a genre of Japanese woodblock print that were mass produced in color beginning in the 1760s. Being mass produced, the goal was to sell as many copies as possible and ukiyo-e typically depict the popular topics of the day such as geisha, kabuki actors, myths and contemporary events. They were often produced in a large series of up to 100 prints with a common theme.
In the 1850s, Japan's markets suddenly open to the west and cheap imports flooded the country. One of the first things that Japan successfully exported to Europe were ukiyo-e prints. At the time, Europe had never seen anything like these highly stylized comic-like artworks. Many well known European artists were greatly influenced by ukiyo-e. For example, Van Gogh was a collector and he completed several works styled after famous ukiyo-e.
With time, ukiyo-e faced increased competition from modern magazines. European art greatly influenced Japan and new generations of Japanese artists experimented with western techniques. It's often said that ukiyo-e peaked in the 1880s. In recent years, there has been renewed interest in ukiyo-e style art and woodblock printing. As with so many traditional Japanese art forms, ukiyo-e is alive and thriving. The following are examples of famous ukiyo-e.
1. The Great Wave Off Kanagawa
Artist: Hokusai
Series: Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji
Year: 1830
The Great Wave Off Kanagawa is one of Japan's most iconic artworks. It's often mistaken for a tsunami but it's in fact a large sea wave. This area of Kanagawa is popular with surfers today.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/header/Great-Wave-Off-Kanagawa-980.jpg
2. Otani Oniji II
Artist: Toshusai Sharaku
Year: 1794
A kabuki actor by the name of Otani Oniji II. Ukiyo-e has a long standing traditional of exaggerating the eyes of kabuki actors.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/midthumb/Otani-Oniji-II-Toshusai-Sharaku-1794-980.jpg
3. Red Fuji Southern Wind Clear Morning
Artist: Hokusai
Series: Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji
Year: 1830
When conditions are just right the sun can turn Mount Fuji a bright red color. The stylized form of this print is often cited as a inspiration for the Impressionist movement in Europe decades later.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/header/Red-Fuji-Southern-Wind-Clear-Morning-980.jpg
4. Inaba Mountain Moon
Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
Series: One Hundred Views of the Moon
Year: 1885
A depiction of a historical event. In the late 16th century a little known peasant rose to become the warlord leader of Japan. His name was Toyotomi Hideyoshi. One of the great moments of his military career was discovering a secret path to the impregnable Saito Castle atop Mount Inaba. He took the castle with only 7 men.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/Inaba-Mountain-Moon-by-Yoshitoshi-980.jpg
5. The Cry Of The Fox
Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
Series: One Hundred Views of the Moon
Year: 1886
A well known story from a comic interlude between kabuki plays. A fox appears as a beautiful woman to a farmer to ask him to stop hunting foxes. The farmer agrees. As the fox departs he begins to morph back to his original form. The story ends with a terrible cry from the fox. He was caught in a trap as he departed. Foxes play a prominent role in Japanese mythology in which they often shapeshift to human form.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/midthumb/Cry-of-The-Fox-Yoshitoshi-980.jpg
6. The 36th Station of The Tokaido: Akasaka
Artist: Hokusai
Series: The 53 Stations of the Tokaido
Year: 1832
In the Edo-era Akasaka in Tokyo was a large pleasure district.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/header/Tokaido-36-Akasaka-980.jpg
7. Daruma Meditating
Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
Series: One Hundred Views of the Moon
Year: 1886
Daruma was the founder of Zen Buddhism. According to legend, he meditated for 9 years in a cave before he reached enlightenment. He stayed so long in the cave that his limbs fell off.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/midthumb/Daruma-Meditating-980.jpg
8. Daimotsu Bay Moon
Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
Series: One Hundred Views of the Moon
Year: 1886
The warrior-priest Musashibo Benkei pacifies the angry spirits of the fallen Taira clan warriors. From the Tale Of The Heike, a mythical account of the war between two clans for control of Japan in the late 12th century.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/midthumb/Daimotsu-kaijo-no-tsuki-by-Yoshitoshi-980.jpg
9. The Fever
Artist: Yoshitoshi
Series: The Fever of Taira no Kiyomori
Year: 1883
Taira No Kiyomori was a 12th century military leader known for his ruthlessness. He had a great fever prior to his death in which he was haunted by visions of his victims waiting for him in the afterlife.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/header/The-Fever-980.jpg
10. The 45th Station of The Tokaido: Shono
Artist: Hokusai
Series: The 53 Stations of the Tokaido
Year: 1832
This print shows what travel was like on Japan's first road: The Tokaido.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/header/Tokaido-45-Shono-by-Hokusai-980.jpg
11. Dawn Moon Of Shibaimachi
Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
Series: One Hundred Views of the Moon
Year: 1886
Customers head home in the morning after a night in the Shibaimachi theatre district.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/midthumb/---Theater-District-Dawn-Moon--Shibaimachi-no-akatsuki-5096-117.jpg
12. Snow
Artist: Yoshitoshi
Series: Snow, Moon and Flowers
Year: 1890
The kabuki actor Onoe Baiko.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/header/Snow-980.jpg
13. Moon of Kintaro's Mountain
Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
Series: One Hundred Views of the Moon
Year: 1886
Kintaro is a mythical Japanese superhero who was raised by a ghost mother on a mountain. As a child Kintaro had only animals as friends. Here he organizes a sumo match between a rabbit and a monkey.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/midthumb/Moon-of-Kintaros-Mountain-by-Yoshitoshi-980.jpg
14. Omori Notices A Demon
Artist: Tsukioka Yoshitoshi
Series: 36 Ghosts
Year: 1889
A Samurai is asked to carry a beautiful woman across a stream. As he crosses he notices demon horns in her reflection in the water. He grabs his sword and cuts her down. Based on an old Japanese ghost story.
https://www.japan-talk.com/images/jt/midthumb/Omori-notices-a-demon-by-Yoshitoshi-980.jpg