TOKAIDO GOJU-SAN-TSUGI c. 19th century

Curator: Looking at this print, there’s something so immediate about the daily life it depicts. Editor: I agree. I find the colors quite soothing. It’s TOKAIDO GOJU-SAN-TSUGI by Utagawa Hiroshige. Curator: This work is a woodblock print, part of a series illustrating the fifty-three post stations along the Tokaido Road, connecting Edo and Kyoto. Consider the social implications of travel during this period. Who was traveling? Why? Editor: The materiality of the print itself – the paper, the pigments, the woodblocks used for its creation – speaks to a whole network of artisans and laborers. Curator: Indeed. These journeys were about power and politics, as well as commerce and pilgrimage. The figures crossing the bridge – are they merchants, officials, or perhaps pilgrims? Their identities are intertwined with the sociopolitical landscape. Editor: And what about the tools used to carve the woodblocks? The types of trees from which the blocks were made? The conditions of the printmakers who produced them? Each material tells a story of labor and resources. Curator: Understanding this piece requires us to acknowledge the systems that allowed it to exist, and that it depicts. Editor: Absolutely, seeing Hiroshige's work through its materials enriches our understanding.