(New Year's decoration) c. 1861 - 1864

"New Year's Decoration," created by Shunshō (1850-1860) between 1861 and 1864, depicts three figures standing in front of a small, green hill. They are wearing traditional Japanese clothing and the composition of the image is very simple, emphasizing the use of negative space. The print is part of a larger series, and is now housed at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, which holds several other woodblock prints from the late Edo period, a time of significant change in Japanese art.