名所江戸百景 王子装束ゑの木大晦日の狐火|New Year's Eve Foxfires at the Changing Tree, Ōji
ca. 1857
Medium
Woodblock print; ink and color on paper
Dimensions
Image: 12 13/16 × 8 5/8 in. (32.5 × 21.9 cm)
Classification
Prints
Culture & Period
Japan · Edo period (1615–1868)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1925
Accession Number
JP1470
Tags
Art Historical Context
Utagawa Hiroshige1797–1858), one of Japan's greatest ukiyo-e masters, a magical moment in his woodblock print *New Year's Eve Foxfires the Changing Tree, ji* (ca. 1857), from the renowned series *One Hundred Famous of Edo*. This vibrant work depicts a snowy winter night in the Ōji neighborhood of Edomodern Tokyo) during the Edo period (5–1868). At center is the legendary "Changing Tree," an ancient enoki associated with shape-shifting foxes—mythical creatures in Japanese folklore known for their foxfires, ethereal blue flames that dance like will-o'-the-wisps, symbolizing supernatural mischief...
About the Artist
Utagawa Hiroshige · 1826–1869
Utagawa Hiroshige (1797–1858), born Andō Tokutarō, was the last great master of Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock printmaking and one of the most influential landscape artists in history. Born in Edo (modern Tokyo) into a low-ranking samurai family serving as fire wardens, Hiroshige transformed landscape printmaking into a poetic meditation on nature, weather, and everyday life. His revolutionary approac...