Japanese Prints: The Art Institute of Chicago

by James T. Ulak

Another in the Abbeville's Tiny Folios series, this little book is a real gem. Another in Abbeville's Tiny Folios series, this little book is a real gem. The Art Institute of Chicago houses one of the world's most beautiful and comprehensive collections of Japanese woodblock prints in the world. Clarence Buckingham, of the famed Chicago family, donated 12,000 prints alone. The book covers this exquisite collection of work from the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries in four Primitives, Courtesans, Actors, and Landscapes. It includes work by well-known masters such as Hiroshige, Hokusia, and Utamaro, as well as lesser-known talents such as Shun'ei, Shunko, and Kiyonaga. While the trim size is small, none of the subtle colors, delicate paper texture, or intricate fabric design is lost.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Japan, Reference

320 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1995

Reviews

[Devlin Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book. It's one of my favorite art books. The images, and there are several of them, are nearly full page and on great stock. The art history is a bit brief but each image is clearly identified.

It just gives me so much pleasure to leaf through this edition and dream.



Devlin

[H (trying to keep up with GR friends) Balikov · Rating 4 out of 5]

Japan finally agreed to open itself to Western nations in the 1850s. There were many things, but particularly art, in which the West became interested.

Japanese prints became very popular. So popular, that less of this art remains in Japan than in other parts of the world. The debate about whether these prints (which raged in the late 19th Century) constituted significant artistry has been resolved. Chicago's Art Institute has amassed a fine collection as is documented in this book. It includes many familiar prints including The Great Wave off Kanagawa (pictured on the cover), one of Katsushika Hokusai's masterpieces.

The book's format is delightful for a casual interest such as my own. This 4 inch square sits on my nightstand and gives a great deal of pleasure in a few minutes of nightly perusal. The necessary information of each print is there for those who want more than the view. It's too bad that even a large museum, such as the Art Institute, cannot display most of their collection at any time. Landscapes, actors, birds, concubines and other subject matter is all covered in this small gem.