Two Tall Young Women Walking Hand in Hand 1775 - 1795

Torii Kiyonaga created this print, Two Tall Young Women Walking Hand in Hand, using woodblock printing techniques. The work's delicate lines and flat planes of color reveal much about the tools and traditions behind it. Woodblock printing demanded close collaboration between the artist, block carvers, and printers. Kiyonaga would have begun by creating a line drawing, which was then painstakingly transferred to a wooden block, usually cherry. Specialist carvers would incise along the lines, cutting away the excess wood. Separate blocks were prepared for each color, and then meticulously printed in layers to build up the final image. The softness of the wood allowed for the depiction of the women's elegant forms. However, the labor-intensive nature of woodblock printing meant that it was an expensive process that was only available to the upper classes. This elegant image, therefore, speaks to the consumption patterns of the elite in Japanese society at the time. Recognizing these material processes helps us appreciate the social and economic context in which this image was made.