Hiroshige

Artist Monographs

by Hiroshige Utagawa, Janina Nentwig

Hiroshige is one of the most important artists of the Japanese woodblock print and is considered a master of “ukiyo-e,” the “pictures of the floating world.” His evocative illustrations show mainly landscapes and scenes from the capital Edo, today’s Tokyo. Nearly 200 images immerse the viewer in the world of nineteenth-century Japan.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Reference

215 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2016

About the author

born 1798

Japanese artist Ando Hiroshige captured the serenity of landscape of his country with his superbly composed color woodblock prints, including Fifty-three Stages of the Tokaido (1832).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hiroshige

Reviews

[Kati · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kniha o jednom z nejznámějších představitelů japonského dřevořezu. Skvělá pro jeho představení - je v ní uveden krátký životopis a základní shrnutí díla - pro hlubší poznání ale vhodná není, zaměřuje se totiž hlavně na fotografie jeho barevných dřevořezů, kterých obsahuje několik desítek.

Mým nejoblíbenějším dřevořezem je Moře poblíž Satta v provincii Suruga, v českém vydání na straně 147.

[Jessada Karnjana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Artists like Claude Monet, James Abbott McNeill Whistler, and Vincent van Gogh collected Japanese woodblocks, especially those by Hokusai and Hiroshige, and were deeply impressed by the foreign compositions. The concentration on line and surface as the main design element opened the artists’ eyes to the opportunities for representing the world beyond the natural image. In an 1888 letter, Van Gogh expressed his admiration for the Japanese art and described the unique quality of Hiroshige’s work: “I envy the Japanese the extreme clarity that everything in their work has. It’s never dull, and never appears to be done too hastily. Their work is as simple as breathing, and they do a figure with a few confident strokes with the same ease as if it was as simple as buttoning your waistcoat.” Janina Nentwig, Hiroshige

[Seven Pesos · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked it. Lovely collection of woodblock prints by the artist known as Hiroshige.

My favorites:

Famous Views of the 60-odd provinces; Shimosuwa, Station 30; Ochanomizu in the Eastern Capital; Hill of the wild geese and the river Tone; Bay of Futami in Ise Province; Shichirighama in Sagami; Asakusa Rice Fields and Torinomachi Festival; The Dyers District in Kanda; Seido and the River Kanda from the Shohei Bridge; The Takata Track; New Year's Gathering of Foxes near the Oji-Inari Shrine; Ushimachi, Takanawa.

[James Varney · Rating 3 out of 5]

Usually I love Konemann books, but frankly the color quality of the prints here is poor, at least in my copy. The book does, however, have a good, comprehensive collection of the Kisokaido prints Hiroshige made with Eisen. The biography provided of Hiroshige is solid.
It’s a Hiroshige book I consult less than others, but to be honest my take may not be typical.

[Yoruichi · Rating 3 out of 5]

les informations que donne ce livre m'ont laissée sur ma faim, mais les estampes sont magnifiques.

[Anna C · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love Hiroshige, but this is an inferior presentation.