Previous image 1 2 3 / 3 Next image

Utagawa Hiroshige 歌川広重

Balloon Flowers and Chinese Silver Grass

Maker

Utagawa Hiroshige 歌川広重 (1797–1858, b. in Edo, Japan)

Title

Balloon Flowers and Chinese Silver Grass

Period

Edo Period

Year

1830s

Medium

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Materials

ink and color

Supports

Geography

Place Made: Japan; Place Made: Edo (location)

Dimensions

Chūtanzakuban 37.8 x 13.1 cm (14 7/8 x 5 3/16 inches)

Signature / Inscription / Marks

Inscription Text/Poem: 脇ひらも　見すに咲たる　桔梗かな
Translation: Chinese bellflower- / at my side if I don't watch, / you bloom and scatter

Signature: 廣重筆 Hiroshige hitsu (Brushed by Hiroshige)

Seals: Designer's seal: 弌立斎 Ichiryūsai

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Gift of Mrs. John D. Rockefeller, Jr.

Object Number

34.233

Type

Exhibition History

Of Clover and Chrysanthemum
Autumn Themes in Japanese Woodblock Prints
Sep 01, 2010 – Dec 12, 2010

Label copy

Balloon- or bellflowers (kikyo), which are also counted among the “seven autumn grasses,” bloom in autumn in Japan. A poem inscribed on the upper right reads:

“Chinese bellflower-

at my side, if I don't watch,

you bloom and scatter”

Of Clover and Chrysanthemums
Autumn Themes on Paper and Cloth
Sep 15, 1995 – Dec 10, 1995
Hiroshige III
Apr 13, 1989 – Jun 23, 1989

Image use

The images on this website can enable discovery and collaboration and support new scholarship, and we encourage their use.

Public Domain This object is in the Public Domain and available under a CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication

Tombstone

Utagawa Hiroshige 歌川広重 (1797–1858, b. in Edo, Japan)
Balloon Flowers and Chinese Silver Grass, 1830s
Polychrome woodblock print (nishiki-e)
Chūtanzakuban 37.8 x 13.1 cm (14 7/8 x 5 3/16 inches)
Gift of Mrs. John D. Rockefeller, Jr. 34.233

To request new photography, please send an email to imagerequest@risd.edu and include your name and the object's accession number.