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.

[Alana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Impressions of a journey. Whether this trip actually occurred remains uncertain. Each a pilgrimage chance to find oneself at it again in daily life, cross-hatching into a squat on the roadside in light and shadow effects.

Just as hats are always a pale disk squeezed ever-so-slightly till its middle point shuffles into an indent. Perfect for shielding a snoozing face when tilted except that the wind is now carrying yours away! In and out of a quick step’s reach.

Mountains too steep and multicoloured to climb, however the rivers are shallower than a blue plain suggests and momently crossable. Now… how the hell did that boulder get there?

The short the tall the stooped in the rain the carried across a delicate portion of a circle bridge by stomachs as bare as butts often are. Ridged rectangles for sails touch the gradient sea on the horizon and a few strokes tell of a downfall’s bitter lashings. Quick. Light my long pipe in this random bonfire and we’re off! It’s all weather to me. Strange loincloths in strange light, nocturne-ing.

When I first moved out there were only two things blue-tacked to my room’s wall for a long time: Rough Sea at Naruto in Awa Province and Asakusa Rice Fields and Torinomachi Festival. The two alternating states of mind of a very confused girl.

[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.