Hiroshige Book of Postcards

Produced between 1856 and 1858 by the artist Utagawa Hiroshige (1797–1858), One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, a collection of woodblock prints, has had a lasting influence on Western art. The Japanese gardens in these prints inspired Claude Monet, and Vincent van Gogh owned several of Hiroshige’s prints depicting plum trees in bloom. Views of Mt. Fuji, city parks, lakes, and peaceful landscapes comprise the 30 dramatic prints in this book of postcards, epitomizing Hiroshige’s superb compositions.

Utagawa Hiroshige

Utagawa Hiroshige (Japanese, 1797–1858), a member of Japan’s samurai class, lived and died in Edo (renamed Tokyo in 1868). He inherited his father’s official post as a fire warden while still in his teens, though he simultaneously apprenticed as aukiyo-e artist. By the 1830s he had come into his artistic maturity, depicting landscapes, birds and flowers, and scenes of daily life. At that time, Japan was opening to the West after centuries of seclusion, and his prints, showcasing the tranquil Japanese countryside, became popular the world over. Hiroshige was one of the last great masters of traditional Japanese woodblock printmaking, and his magnum opus, the print series One Hundred Famous Views of Edo ranks among the greatest achievements of Japanese art.