A new perspective
Understanding the role of architecture in the Ukiyo-e printing tradition through Hiroshige Utagawa
T.R. van der Eng (TU Delft - Architecture and the Built Environment)
Everhard Korthals Altes – Mentor (TU Delft - History, Form & Aesthetics)
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Abstract
Ukiyo-e or “pictures of the floating world” is the woodblock printing tradition which dominated the Japanese art world throughout the Edo period in imperial Japan from the start of the 17th century until deep into the 19th century. The Ukiyo-e are generally characterized by its vibrant colours, dynamic compositions and depiction of everyday life and popular culture. The subjects where a mirage of the hedonistic lifestyle a new middle class sought. These included pornographic scenery, the kabuki theatre, courtesans of the brothels and landscapes. However not a main subject itself, architecture in its many forms and scales makes appearances in a considerable amount of prints. Yet when consulting the literature, which contains an abundancy on the mentioned print subjects, composition, and ways of working, little can be found about the direct role of the architectural depiction within the Ukiyo-e tradition. This paper serves as a first attempt to uncover this role of architecture. Through a combination of a literary study with a personal analysis, the depicted architecture is dissected in the work of the master Hiroshige Utagawa (1797-1858). The research showed two distinct ways architecture was deployed: directly used to explain a history, a place or as an amplifier of a series’ subject. This often goes together with an insurance of recognizable architectural structures. Then there is the more indirect and subtle way in which architecture is utilized by Hiroshige in which the architecture is a tool which helps transferring an emotion, feeling or bold composition. Throughout his work, it turned out it was more important that the architecture served as a tool to make a place readable and a print digestible for the public. It became clear Hiroshige understood the properties of architecture and adopted its characteristics to his needs or altered them when necessary. This research serves as a first foundation for further research on the specific relation between the Ukiyo-e and architectural depiction. Cross-analysis with other masters, and throughout different eras within the Edo period can perhaps offer more insight in the topic.