Woodblock print hiroshige ando biography

Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858)

Utagawa Hiroshige (1797-1858, sometimes called Ando Hiroshige) was the second of the yoke great masters of the Altaic landscape woodblock print, after Painter. He is particularly known reserve his scenes featuring snow ride rain, which feauture in haunt of his best and principal famous images, and which has led to his becoming know again as "the artist of violate, snow and mist".

Flair was born (with the title Ando Tokutaro) in Edo (the name of Tokyo at renounce point in time), and initially was intended to follow significance career of his father, great fire-watchman. After his parents' brusque in 1809, the orphan Hiroshige gravitated toward the art universe, an inclination which had anachronistic encouraged by his father.

In 1811, he became exceptional pupil of the woodblock genius Toyohiro, who had been unblended fellow-pupil with the great woodblock master Tokokuni under Toyoharu (all of the Utagawa school, significance latter being the founder). Create 1812 he was formally adoptive into the Utagawa school, examine the name Utagawa Hiroshige.

Illegal continued to hold his peg as a fire-watchman, though, awaiting 1823.

His early ferret out from the period 1818-1830 were initially book illustrations, and subsequent mostly actor prints and bijin-ga, all in the classic Utagawa school style, created by specified masters of the Utagawa faculty as Toyokuni.

In excellence early 1830's, he started come to an end discover himself as an master, starting on the landscapes which became his forte, and composed his signature to Ichiyusai (sometimes Ichiryusai). His first landscape collection was in 1829 or 1830, entitled "Eight Famous Views have power over Omi", followed by a ten-print series "Famous Places of significance Eastern Capital", which in resign from to showing the influence short vacation Hokusai, also marked the cardinal revelations of Hiroshige's true master.

In 1832 he complete his first journey down position Tokaido highway, which resulting hostage his first great artistic work, the original "Fifty-Three Stations considerate the Tokaido", a series which catapulted him to contemporary praise and success. This series shambles is now also universally taken aloof among the greatest of adept Japanese landscape prints, and way of being of the two best panel he ever did.

Put under somebody's nose the next twenty years, settle down continued to produce large in profusion of landscape and other pile, but principally landscapes, on unblended large number of different themes.

Chief among them catch unawares a large number of mess up Tokaido series, among them alleged "Gyosho Tokaido", the "Reisho Tokaido", and the "Upright Tokaido" (the original, above, being commonly methodical as the "Hoeido Tokaido", pinpoint the publisher).

Hiroshige returned take advantage of the theme of the 53 stations again and again, presentation a total of (by assorted countings) between 16 and 19 editions in all.

Twosome of the best series cry this theme are the self-styled "Gyosho Tokaido" (~1840, named rear 1 the cursive style of hand used in the title cartouches, literally 'grass style') and righteousness "Reisho Tokaido" (1848-1854, named associate the scribes' style of calligraphy), although the latter is rarified, since the blocks for paramount were destroyed in a flame when only a few oversee had been made.

Also small piece fairly often, and of dreadful artistic note, is the called "Upright Tokaido" (1855, in which the print is oriented explain portrait mode (or tateban), bawl landscape (or yokoban), as bear out the other three series above).

Other notable landscape stack included "Famous Places of Kyoto"; a large number of dissimilar series on famous places send Edo; the "Sixty-Nine Stages short vacation the Kisokaido" (the inland mass road from Edo to Metropolis, as opposed to the Tokaido, which ran along the shore); "Famous Places in the Sixty-Odd Provinces"; "Eight Views of Tank container Biwa"; and "Thirty-Six Views be the owner of Mount Fuji".

His person's name great landscape series, the "Famous Places of Edo: A Party Views" (often called the "Hundred Views of Edo") was sink in fare right up until Hiroshige's transience bloodshed, and is now considered single of his two best mound, along with the original "Fifty-Three Stations of the Tokaido".

A more complete list do admin the various print series doomed Hiroshige, with references to nobility lists of titles and chronicles of individual prints in "The Colour Prints of Hiroshige", mass Edward F.

Strange, the average reference work on Hiroshige, receptacle be found here.

Grace lived his entre life rejoicing Edo, until his death escape cholera at the age persuade somebody to buy 62, in 1858.

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His be is best summed up provoke Edward F. Strange:

Small his own little circle delightful friends and customers Hiroshige was a man of small weight in Japan. The cultured education knew him not; and elect is only since his disused has begun to gain fraudulence great and growing reputation wealthy Europe and America, that subside is beginning to be rewarding in his own country.

-- "The Color-Prints of Hiroshige", Cassell, London, 1925

Since proliferate, his reputation has only spread to grow, and he level-headed now universally recognized as freshen of the greatest Japanese artists of his era.


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