Yokkaichi: View of the Mie River, from the series The Fifty-Three Stations of the Tōkaidō c. 1833 - 1834

This print, Yokkaichi: View of the Mie River, from the series The Fifty-Three Stations of the Tōkaidō, was made by Utagawa Hiroshige using woodblock printing, a technique perfected in Japan over centuries. The appeal of this image lies in the artist's control of line, color and composition. But it is worth remembering that Hiroshige did not cut the block himself. Specialist artisans were responsible for that labor, skillfully translating his original drawing. First, the key lines were carved on a block of cherry wood, which was then used to print the basic design. Additional blocks would then be made for each color, each requiring separate printing. The success of the process depended not only on the artist’s vision, but also on the skills of the cutters and printers. Woodblock prints were relatively inexpensive and therefore accessible to a broad public. Inexpensive art was thus enabled by a division of labor, with specialist artisans responsible for the final image.