Oranges and Dried Persimmons 19th century

Curator: It’s interesting to consider this 19th-century Japanese woodblock print titled "Oranges and Dried Persimmons" by Kubo Shunman, currently held at The Met. Editor: Instantly, I get a sense of understated abundance. The muted palette makes you lean in. It's almost like peering into a pantry bathed in twilight, if that makes any sense. Curator: It does! And what makes it sing is the tension between the simplicity of the subject matter - just some fruit – and the very complex technique of a ukiyo-e print, requiring collaboration between artist, block cutter, and printer. The ink and watercolours used are quite amazing. Editor: Exactly, it speaks of a process where labour and tradition elevate the ordinary. But do you see the melancholy hanging in the air too? Perhaps because these fruits, these beautiful pigments, are also signs of consumption, of passing seasons? Curator: Yes, it serves as a reminder of transience and, in turn, an attempt to defy the inevitable by preserving the bounty of nature via artistry. The deliberate craftsmanship reflects social and cultural values linked to food and aesthetics. And let's consider how these images were distributed. Editor: Good point. Printmaking makes art more accessible and widespread, defying those traditional boundaries. You suddenly have humble foods – accessible in some sense to most, at least on certain levels, though some, obviously, would be scarcer – and transformed through meticulous methods to gain this higher significance. Curator: Definitely. It reflects changing economies. Anyway, seeing the subtle textures and layered colours achieved with woodblocks makes one appreciate the material culture underpinning the art itself. The consumption habits within artistic practice. Editor: To come full circle – I’m struck again by how even with simple fruit – that choice to record it, speaks to the core of the fleeting, sensual experience, and art's capacity to briefly pause time. I think Shunman achieves a gorgeous testament to something deceptively commonplace.