Picture Book of the Evergreens 1731

Curator: Good morning. We're looking at Nishikawa Sukenobu’s “Picture Book of the Evergreens,” created around 1731. This print offers us a glimpse into ukiyo-e, a genre painting with a vibrant figuration displayed via woodblock print. What strikes you most when you see it? Editor: The intimacy. It’s not epic landscapes or mythical beings—just everyday folk strolling about. The subtle washes of color…it’s like capturing a fleeting, ordinary moment, and turning it into art. What do you see happening formally? Curator: Precisely. Notice the deliberate arrangement of figures and architectural elements across the diptych pages, achieving balance, though not symmetry. Lines are used deftly—defining the edges of garments, hair, and structures, resulting in an aesthetic typical of this form. Editor: The kimonos especially seem like tiny universes unto themselves! Each design tells a story of texture and status; you can almost feel the weight of the silk. Plus, they create rhythmic visual patterns and, dare I say, tiny color explosions against the relative minimalism of the architecture in the backdrop. Curator: Indeed, Sukenobu contrasts the detailed patterns of the clothing against simpler backdrops, enhancing focus and reflecting the ukiyo-e penchant for capturing the fleeting beauties of the temporal world. And speaking of formal beauty: note how even with flat expanses of colors, shading conveys a depth to each of these characters and to the constructed environs that is surprisingly evocative. Editor: Do you think it conveys movement too? The guy looks almost mid-stride with that sort of bemused face... Is it a hot take to consider that this diptych could be very funny, actually? What’s that situation between the bald man and those women!? Curator: Humor can certainly exist. Through a formal reading of figuration alongside architecture, “Picture Book of the Evergreens" grants insight into an era’s emphasis on the beauty found in daily occurrences, while simultaneously exemplifying the height of visual printmaking techniques from the period. Editor: To look is really to imagine. I will, anyway, because Sukenobu definitely encourages seeing beyond surfaces and stepping into the ephemeral nature of now.