Arai 1906

This is Arai, a woodblock print by Utagawa Hiroshige, probably made sometime in the 1830s. Look at the way Hiroshige uses these flat planes of color to create space. It’s like he’s building the scene up from paper cutouts, each layer a little further away. You can almost feel the process in the finished image. I’m really drawn to the water. The way the lines curve and flow, it's simple, almost like a child's drawing, but it totally captures the feeling of the waves. You can see the individual marks of the woodblock, the slight imperfections that give it so much character. It makes you feel like you’re right there, on the boat with those figures. Hiroshige’s prints remind me a bit of Matisse's cutouts – that same sense of joy and immediacy. It’s not about perfection, it’s about capturing a feeling, a moment in time. Ultimately, this print is a great reminder that art doesn’t always have to be complicated. Sometimes, the simplest things can be the most powerful.