Asakusa Seiran
Original title: Asakusa Seiran
kurzbeschreibung
Unlike many related prints by Harunobu, this colour woodblock does not centre on a single isolated figure. Instead it gives us an interior with two people in traditional dress, seated on a bench in front of a shelf. Made in the eighteenth century, the work is printed in ink and colour on paper.
Description
Two principal figures face each other in near symmetry, placed in the foreground before a shelf holding bottles and containers. Behind them, further people gather at a table with a bowl, and a window opens onto a river lined with trees. Chinese characters are worked into the image, and earth tones together with blues govern the palette.
Context
Harunobu is regarded as a pioneer of multicolour woodblock printing, or nishiki-e, in the Edo period. The subject draws on an everyday scene of the kind typical of ukiyo-e, which recorded the 'floating world' of the city's inhabitants. The exact date of the sheet is not recorded; Harunobu was active between roughly 1760 and 1770.
Impact
Crisp lines and a calm, symmetrical layout produce a quiet, intimate mood. The balanced pairing of earth tones and blue gives the print an even, composed feel, an effect characteristic of the refined aesthetic of the Japanese woodblock.
Technique
Ink and colours were applied to paper by means of woodblock printing. As close looking reveals, this keeps the lines precise and separates the areas of colour cleanly from one another.
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Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)