Night View of Saruwaka-machi by Utagawa Hiroshige

Night View of Saruwaka-machi 1857

print, ink, color-on-paper

aged paper

toned paper

childish illustration

print

traditional media

japan

personal sketchbook

ink

color-on-paper

watercolour bleed

watercolour illustration

cartoon carciture

cartoon theme

watercolor

"Night View of Saruwaka-machi" is a woodblock print by Utagawa Hiroshige, a renowned Japanese artist from the Edo period. Created in 1857, the print depicts a bustling street scene in Tokyo, with people moving about under a luminous moon. The perspective emphasizes the long, narrow street lined with buildings, creating a sense of depth and atmosphere. This piece, showcasing Hiroshige's mastery of ukiyo-e techniques, captures the vibrant energy of Edo-era urban life.

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minneapolisinstituteofart about 1 year ago

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After the fire of 1841, a new theater district was established to the northeast of Asakusa Kannon Temple known as Saruwaka Street, after Saruwaka Kanzaburo, the founder of the first Kabuki theater in Edo over 200 years earlier. In this print, Hiroshige illustrates three theaters on the west (right) side of the street, identified by the boxed turrets that project above the eaves of the buildings. Tea houses and puppet theaters are located on the east (left) side of the street. Hiroshige's dramatic use of Western one-point vanishing perspective for this print is unique among the 118 prints of the series. The relative darkness of the Kabuki theaters suggests that the season has not yet begun. This, together with the shadows of the people cast by the moonlight, give the print a hauntingly quiet impression, quite at odds with the typical bustling atmosphere associated with Saruwaka Street.