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Utagawa Hiroshige 歌川広重

Preliminary drawings for tanzaku prints

Maker

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

Title

Preliminary drawings for tanzaku prints

Period

Edo Period

Year

after 1830

Medium

Materials/Techniques

Techniques

Materials

ink

Supports

Geography

Place Made: Japan

Dimensions

Backing sheet: 39 x 24.5 cm (15 3/8 x 9 5/8 inches)

Signature / Inscription / Marks

Inscription Text/Poem: Center landscape with waterfall inscribed 山口 Yamaguchi

Credit / Object Number

Credit

Elizabeth T. and Dorothy N. Casey Fund

Object Number

2000.83

Type

Publications

Exhibition History

Process and Function
Traditional Japanese Printmaking Technique
Jan 19, 2007 – May 27, 2007
Hiroshige
Selections from the Collection
Mar 07, 2003 – Jun 01, 2003

Label copy

This set of three sketches was intended as a design for three prints made from a standard sheet of paper (10 x 15 inches, called an oban in Japanese). After the sheet was produced, it would have been cut into three individual prints.

The digital images show how the final composition for the left-hand panel evolved through several stages. Changes and corrections were made on new layers of paper added to the original sheet. The third and final version is far simpler than the first composition laid down by Hiroshige.

Image use

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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)
Preliminary drawings for tanzaku prints, after 1830
Ink on paper mounted on paper
Backing sheet: 39 x 24.5 cm (15 3/8 x 9 5/8 inches)
Elizabeth T. and Dorothy N. Casey Fund 2000.83

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