Surugacho, from the series "One Hundred Famous Views of Edo (Meisho Edo hyakkei)"
Medium
Color woodblock print; ōban
Dimensions
36.5 × 24.5 cm (14 3/8 × 9 5/8 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
150257
Rights
Public Domain
About this artwork
In this print, Hiroshige oriented the street to lead directly to a view of Mount Fuji in the distance. The mountain is a cultural and religious icon in Japan, and artists frequently include it in their work. On either side of the bustling boulevard is the Echigoya store, the forerunner of today’s Mitsukoshi department stores. The urban scene is separated from Mount Fuji by a layer of wafting clouds edged in purple and orange gradation (bokashi). Though the sacred mountain is physically separate ...
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...