1,000+ Japanese Edo Woodblock Prints By Utagawa Hiroshige Released For Free Use
Image via The Minneapolis Institute of Art
More than 1,000 woodblock prints created by renowned Japanese artist Utagawa Hiroshige (1797—1858) during Japan’s Edo period have been made available for download by the Minneapolis Institute of Art.
Ukiyo-e, literally “pictures of the floating world,” came into fruition in Japan between the 17th and 19th centuries, the country’s Edo era. During this period, Japan’s borders were largely closed off to the rest of the world, and only some Dutch and Chinese traders were allowed into the country, with restrictions imposed. The ukiyo-e prints allow a peek into Japanese life from the time, before the country reopened. Due to the number of restrictions imposed by the government then, people often turned to entertainment, and this included the consumption of art.
Subjects of these prints often revolve around landscapes, scenes of indoor and home life, kabuki (theater) actors, the Yoshiwara red light district, the development of the city, and bijin-ga (“beautiful women”), to name a few.
Hiroshige was estimated to have created over 5,000 prints during his lifetime, and around 10,000 copies have been made from a select few of his woodblocks. As his biography in the Britannica writes: “Hiroshige’s life was his work, with neither peaks nor valleys. He leaves the impression of a largely self-taught artist who limited himself to the devices and capacity of his own nature. Hiroshige was fond of travel, loved wine and good food, and in his other tastes was a true citizen of Edo.”
These gorgeous prints can be viewed and downloaded on the Minneapolis Institute of Art’s website, linked here.
Under the public domain, they are also free for personal and commercial use.
Image via The Minneapolis Institute of Art
Image via The Minneapolis Institute of Art
Image via The Minneapolis Institute of Art
Image via The Minneapolis Institute of Art
Image via The Minneapolis Institute of Art
[via My Modern Met, images via The Minneapolis Institute of Art]
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