True mass production of art printing was thriving in the east, specifically in Japan as early as the 1600 CE in the form of Ukiyo-e, or woodblock art prints. During the Edo Period of the 17th-19th centuries, household names included Hiroshige, Hokusai, and Kunichika, among others. Their widely produced Ukiyo-e made them well-known stars, similar to famous kabuki actors, war heroes, and teahouse beauties. The most famous Ukiyo-e of all time falls into five main categories of woodblock art prints: beautiful women, landscapes, warriors/heroes, kabuki actors, and shunga (illegal, sexually explicit art). Spanning from the 17th to the 19th centuries, here are the ten most important Ukiyo-e prints of all time.
1. The Famous Ukiyo-e Print Under The Great Wave of Kanagawa
By far the best known Ukiyo-e print of all time, The Great Wave as it is commonly known, comes from Hokusai’s series titled 36 Views of Mount Fuji. This print was widely celebrated and collected by European and French collectors. It has been copied and reproduced considerably over the centuries.
2. The Plum Garden at Kameido Shrine: A Ukiyo-e Masterpiece
This print comes from Hiroshige’s series One hundred views of famous places in Edo. Van Gogh copied his design in 1887 and by doing so made it one of the most influential art prints from Ukiyo-e art. The tree featured in this print is known as the Sleeping Dragon Plum and it was lauded for its purity shown through double white blossoms, known for being so white that they could drive the darkness out of a soul.
3. Station thirty-two: Seba
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The print Seba comes from Hiroshige’s series titled One hundred views of famous places in Edo. Hiroshige, who was best known for his wide sweeping landscapes, finished this print in order to complete the Kisokaidō highway series abandoned by another Ukiyo-e artist Keisai Eisen. Many of Hiroshige’s most cherished designs show people doing familiar tasks tied to seasons, nature, and different rituals.
4. Tako to Ama, the Dream of the Fisherman’s Wife
Tako to Ama, the Dream of the Fisherman’s Wife falls into the illegal Ukiyo-e art category known as shunga. This print is one of the best-known works from Japanese Edo art as well as classical shunga. Further, this fascinating image of a classic Japanese myth reveals how artists under the Tokugawa shogunate, who restricted sexual imagery, creatively depicted intercourse and sexual acts without breaking the law. The work may seem shocking to our eyes, but at the time this would have been a common image of shunga. The print was widely distributed among print collectors and seen in everyday households.
5. The Teahouse Waitress Takashima Ohisa
Prints of desired beautiful women of the time featured the latest fashion and hairstyles as well as hints of eroticism, which further enhanced their appeal to popular audiences. Research also points that the word Ukiyo-e itself means “Art of the Floating World” which in some cases refers to the world of sex workers, teahouses, and the geisha culture. The artist Shunchō shows in this print a famed beauty, covering her face with an elegant fan that bears her personal crest: the three oak leaves. The beautiful garments she is wearing and the summery feeling that the print gives us would have made this work especially desirable for that season. The background shimmers with mica, a mineral powder commonly used in woodblock printing in order to brighten and shimmer paint.
6. The Beloved Wife’s Particolored Reins
By far the most popular prints of the time were those showing Kabuki actors. These prints show a grotesque and dramatic glory with bright, contrasting colors, complicated action scenes, and striking facial expressions. Kabuki theatre was, and still is, a unique and integral part of Japanese culture. In Kabuki, actors depict roles with a variety of often overly dramatic expressions and costumes, accompanied by traditional music, long pauses, and various theatre nuances. Each famous actor of the Kabuki stage became a legend in their own right and the artists of the time represented each actor’s individualistic style in their prints.
7. The Sea at Satta in Suruya Province
This landscape print pays homage to Hokusai’s The Great Wave in its striking movement and dramatic, deeply curved waves. All landscape prints represent a late development in the designs of Ukiyo-e. Before the 1830s, the main subjects of print designs were famous beautiful women, actors, and scenes taken from urban life. Landscape prints that became popular after the 1830s signify a change to artistic print designs focused on nature. This shift could suggest a rise in leisure travel within Japan and increasing demand for souvenirs of well-visited places, such as Mount Fuji.
8. Evening Glow at Ryōgoku Bridge
This specific style of landscape print where the viewer seems to be looking through a portal or a round window was used by Kiyonaga. This type of print suggests European influence as well as a growing change in the use of single-point perspective. The previous style of perspective used by Edo-era print designers tilted the ground so that objects farther away were placed higher up in the scene to indicate their distance. With increased trade and influences coming from the West, artists began adopting some of the perspectives found in Western art. This can be easily seen in Kiyonaga’s print where we see a more realistic depth of the space pictured in the print.
9. Toki Jūrōzaemon Mitsuchika
Warrior prints make up the third-largest collection of Ukiyo-e designs. Although potentially less popular now due to their aggressive, slightly complicated, and hectic aesthetic, warrior prints can be seen as the prints that are most subtle, political, and filled with deeper meaning. Through the ban on illicit images, Japan of the 18th century was also subjected to political bans of war imagery which glorified uprising, criticized the current regime, or even mentioned the great unifier of Japan Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
Artists found creative ways to avoid the imagery ban by showing stories set much further back in time, as well as using animal imagery to replace real characters. This was also common in sexually explicit designs as well and The Fisherman’s Wife is a good example of that. This dramatic scene by Kuniyoshi depicts a warrior crawling around his wounded comrades in order to complete the attempted assassination of Hideyoshi. Kuniyoshi was able to create this print by changing names and adjusting the time period.
10. A Fascinating Ukiyo-e Print: View of Maruyama in Nagasaki
This final print portrays many of the classic elements of Edo Ukiyo-e printmaking. Here, we see two women, likely representing sex workers, positioned in the foreground wearing classical, patterned robes. The background is positioned higher up which was a way of showing that a place was far away. However, the Western influence of single-point perspective can be seen in the shapes of the building, and sloping lines of the roof and porch, demonstrating a new stylistic development in Ukiyo-e history.
By Avery ChesPost Graduate Studies in Fine Art, BA History of ArtAvery is a fine artist and art historian passionate about women in the arts and cross-cultural influences on the west. After two years in the Navy with a BA in Art History from Tulane University, Avery worked for Sotheby’s (New York), as a restoration painter, explored the art of Europe and then decided to pursue her own art full-time. She is committed to helping creative entrepreneurs succeed through mentorship, continuing education and shared community. Originally from Kentucky and New Orleans, Louisiana, Avery is currently exploring the South of France where she completed post-graduate studies in Painting & Drawing and now studies French.
FAQs
What is the most famous ukiyo-e print? ›
By far the best known Ukiyo-e print of all time, The Great Wave as it is commonly known, comes from Hokusai's series titled 36 Views of Mount Fuji. This print was widely celebrated and collected by European and French collectors. It has been copied and reproduced considerably over the centuries.
Why are ukiyo-e prints is very important? ›Ukiyo-e were used to help children with their reading and to learn the names of birds and flowers. After Japan reopened its doors to the world after the Meiji Restoration in 1868, ukiyo-e prints showing the alphabet and basic English vocabulary also made an appearance.
What are the different types of ukiyo-e prints? ›Ukiyo-e was known for a number of genres depicting certain aspects of Japanese life. These included bijin-ga, shunga, yakusha-e, kacho-ga, and landscape.
What were the most common themes in ukiyo-e prints? ›The most prevalent subjects in ukiyo-e prints were kabuki theater actors and “beauties,” who were often courtesans, entertainers, and fashionable women. Other common ukiyo-e print figures were historic and mythical warriors and heroes, and fantastical creatures such as ghosts and demons.
What is the most famous Japanese print? ›The Great Wave off Kanagawa is known as the most recognizable Japanese painting in the world and is artist Hokusai's most well-known artwork. It was published around 1892 as the first print of the series Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji.
What is the most famous Japanese woodblock print? ›When thinking of Japanese woodblock prints, the first image that springs into the minds of most will be Hokusai's Great Wave off Kanagawa. He is famed for his many landscapes showing waterfalls, bridges, and mountains—especially Mount Fuji—but also produced many pictures of ghosts, wildlife, and erotic imagery.
How many Colours in each of the ukiyo-e prints? ›By the time of Hokusai and Hiroshige, ukiyo-e prints were produced with up to twenty different colors, virtually each requiring its own carved block.
What are four types of prints used in the visual arts? ›Traditional printmaking techniques include woodcut, etching, engraving, and lithography, while modern artists have expanded available techniques to include screenprinting.
What are Japanese prints called? ›Japanese art prints, or Ukiyo-e (which literally means “pictures of the floating world”) have become an increasingly popular art form in the Western world.
What is the meaning of ukiyo-e the best known and most popular style of Japanese art? ›ukiyo-e, (Japanese: “pictures of the floating world”) one of the most important genres of art of the Tokugawa period (1603–1867) in Japan.
What is ukiyo class 10? ›
Kitagawa Utamaro is known for his art forms called Ukiyo or the pictures of the floating world, in simple terms, the depiction of ordinary human experiences in urban culture.
What is the most popular style of Japanese art which means picture of the floating world? ›“Ukiyo-e translates as “pictures of the floating world”, referring to the transitory nature of life. Visitors will see delicate prints depicting scenes celebrating everyday life, through themes such as landscape and travel, actors and courtesans, and folk tales.
Which is the oldest printing book of Japan? ›The oldest printed Japanese book is the Buddhist Diamond Sutra. It was printed in 868 AD. The book has six sheets of text with beautiful woodcut illustrations made on paper.
What are the five known arts in Japan? ›Traditional forms. The highly refined traditional arts of Japan include such forms as the tea ceremony, calligraphy, and ikebana (flower arranging) and gardening, as well as architecture, painting, and sculpture.
What is Japan most popular painting? ›Katsushika Hokusai - The Great Wave off Kanagawa
Finally, The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Katsushika Hokusai is probably the most recognizable Japanese painting ever made. It's actually the most prominent piece of art “made in Japan”.
Ukiyo-e is the best-known type of Japanese woodblock art print. Most European uses of the technique for printing images on paper are covered by the art term woodcut, except for the block books produced mainly in the 15th century.
What were the first woodblock prints? ›The oldest surviving woodblock print in the world seems to be the Pure Light Dharani-sutra, a small Buddhist scroll discovered in 1966 at the Pulguk-sa Temple in Kyongju. Scholars have deduced that it was published under Silla patronage around 751 A.D.
Are Japanese prints valuable? ›Japanese woodblock prints range in value from a few hundred dollars to upwards of $1 million. Exceptional examples by master printmakers like Hiroshige, Hokusai, and Kitagawa Utamaro, which tend to make infrequent appearances on the open market, fetch impressive prices due to their age and rarity.
What does ukiyo stand for? ›The word “ukiyo” refers to the world of people, and “e” means "picture." Ukiyo-e originally depicted the everyday life of people living in the city of Kyoto in the late sixteenth century. It became a popular art form in the Edo period (1603–1867), though, thanks partly to advances in woodblock printing techniques.
What does ukiyo mean in English? ›Ukiyo (浮世, "floating/fleeting/transient world") is the Japanese term used to describe the urban lifestyle and culture, especially the pleasure-seeking aspects, of Edo period Japan (1600–1867).
What kind of art is ukiyo-e? ›
About. Literally meaning “Pictures of the Floating World," Ukiyo-e refers to a style of Japanese woodblock print and painting from the Edo period depicting famous theater actors, beautiful courtesans, city life, travel in romantic landscapes, and erotic scenes.
What are some characteristics of Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock prints quizlet? ›What are some characteristics of Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock prints? They have ambiguous space and cropped forms. Which characteristic describes chi wara masks made by Bamana artists of Africa? They contain abstract forms of an antelope and were used in farming celebrations.
How many color prints are there? ›These four colors are Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, and Black- which are known collectively as CMYK. In fact, 4-Color Process printing is frequently referred to as CMYK printing. It is also known as Four Color Printing, 4CP, Full Color Printing, or simply Process Printing.
How is ukiyo-e art made? ›Ink is applied to the surface of the woodblock. Rubbing a round pad over the back of a piece of paper laid over the top of the inked board makes a print. Polychrome prints were made using a separate carved block for each color, which could number up to twenty.
Where were the ukiyo-e prints made? ›The Japanese art of Ukiyo-e developed in the city of Edo (now Tokyo) during the Tokugawa or Edo Period (1615-1868). These two names refer to the relatively peaceful 250 years during which the Tokugawa shoguns ruled Japan and made Edo the shogunal seat of power.
What is the first print called? ›No one knows when the first printing press was invented or who invented it, but the oldest known printed text originated in China during the first millennium A.D. The Diamond Sutra, a Buddhist book from Dunhuang, China from around 868 A.D. during the Tang Dynasty, is said to be the oldest known printed book.
What is the most important part of a print? ›1. Resolution: Resolution of the printer is an important factor. If the resolution of file is not good then the prints will be blurry, muddy and incoherent. DPI, dots per inch is the most important measure when it comes to print output.
What are the 5 types of print media? ›The two most common print media are newspapers and magazines, but print media also include outdoor billboards, transit posters, the yellow pages, and direct mail.
What are art prints called? ›A print is any work of art made in multiple iterations, created through a transfer process. There are many different types of prints, and the process is constantly evolving, but the four best-known techniques are etching, lithography, screenprint and woodcut.
What are cute Japanese drawings called? ›Kawaii drawings are generally identified as simple black-line characters with minimal features, rounded edges and youthful appearances (think Hello Kitty and Pikachu). They often illicit warm, happy, calm thoughts, and drawing cute characters can make the process of learning a new skill more enjoyable.
What is Japanese paper called? ›
Washi is the Japanese word for the traditional papers made from the long inner fibres of three plants, wa meaning Japanese and shi meaning paper.
What design movement did ukiyo-e influence? ›Some art scholars believe that Ukiyo-e woodblock prints and in particular, the Japanese print-maker, Hokusai, as the “father” of modern Western art. This Japanese art form had a huge influence on the Impressionism, Post-Impressionism & the Nouveau art movements.
What is the best known and most popular style of Japanese art which is related to the style of woodblock print making? ›Ukiyo-e is the best-known type of Japanese woodblock art print. Although the earliest-known Japanese woodblock printing dates from 764-770, the technique was only widely adopted in Japan during the Edo period (1603-1867).
What led to the development of the ukiyo-e style of art what does the term ukiyo-e mean? ›Ukiyo-e, meaning 'pictures of the floating world,' is a well-known Japanese painting and woodblock print style. The Buddhist term 'ukiyo' originally described the sadness and transience of human life. Later, the phrase came to describe the fashion, lifestyle, and urban culture of Japan.
Why is ukiyo-e popular? ›Ukiyo-e, the famous genre of Japanese woodblock printing that translates to the beautiful name of “pictures of the floating world” in English, has captured the admiration of people all over the world, with its bold compositions and vivid colors.
Why was ukiyo-e so popular? ›Colorful ukiyo-e, with its bold contrasts of black and white, is full of a sense of freedom that is characterized by a peaceful and uneventful era that lasted for more than 260 years, and vividly portrayed the nature of the freehearted common people of the Edo era and what their social life was like at the time.
Why is ukiyo-e called the floating world? ›During Japan's Edo period (1615–1868) the phrase "the floating world" (ukiyo) evoked an imagined universe of wit, stylishness, and extravagance—with overtones of naughtiness, hedonism, and transgression. Implicit was a contrast to the humdrum of everyday obligation.
Which of these is the most iconic of all ukiyo-e prints? ›By far the best known Ukiyo-e print of all time, The Great Wave as it is commonly known, comes from Hokusai's series titled 36 Views of Mount Fuji. This print was widely celebrated and collected by European and French collectors.
What is the purpose of the ukiyo style of art? ›Ukiyo-e art which translates to English as “pictures from the floating world,” often focuses on the hedonistic aspect of Japanese life during the Edo period, and the beauty of the country's natural landscapes.
What is the most well known and popular form of Japanese art? ›In particular woodblock prints, ukiyo-e, reached their apex in popularity and sophistication. Ukiyo-e literally means pictures of the floating world.
Which style was directly inspired by ukiyo-e prints? ›
The Impressionists were also interested in Japanese prints. After visiting an 1890 exhibition of ukiyo-e prints in Paris, Mary Cassatt employed similar decorative patterns, flattened spaces and simplified figures in a series of color etchings that includes The Letter.
When was ukiyo-e most popular? ›Ukiyo-e is a genre of Japanese art that became popular in the 17th century through to the 19th century.
Who were the two most famous ukiyo-e artists? ›HIROSHIGE (1797-1858)
Utagawa Hiroshige is, along with Hokusai, arguably the best known ukiyo-e artist in the West. Hiroshige was born into a samurai family whose duty was to protect the royal residence, Edo Castle, from fire.
Katsushika Hokusai - The Great Wave off Kanagawa
Finally, The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Katsushika Hokusai is probably the most recognizable Japanese painting ever made. It's actually the most prominent piece of art “made in Japan”.
Characteristics of Ukiyo-e
Appreciated for its bright colour and decorativeness, its images frequently depicted a narrative, and included animals, birds and landscapes, as well as people from the lower social classes, like courtesans, sumo wrestlers and Kibuki actors.
Ukiyo-e
Who is the best known and most popular style of Japanese art? ›From this period of Japanese art history rose one of the most beloved Japanese artists, Katsushika Hokusai. His landscape The Great Wave Off Kanagawa is among the most famous Japanese prints.