Dawn over Mout Fuji and Susaki, from the series "Five Views of Mount Fuji (Fuji goban no uchi)"

Art Historical Context

Behold *Dawn over Mount Fuji andaki*, a captivating color woodblock print by Utagawa Kuniy (1797–1861), from his series *Five Views of Mount Fuji (Fuji goban no uchi)*, created around 1827–29. This intimate shikishiban surimono—measuring just 20.9 × 18.3 cm—captures the sacred peak at dawn, with the foreground expanse of Susaki, a coastal area near Edo (modern Tokyo), bathed in soft morning light. Kuniyoshi, a master of the ukiyo-e ("pictures of the floating world") tradition, here shifts from his renowned warrior and supernatural themes to poetic landscapes, evoking the era's fascination with...

About the Artist

Utagawa Kuniyoshi · 1797–1861

Utagawa Kuniyoshi (1797–1861) was born in Edo to the silk-dyer Yanagiya Kichiyemon, originally bearing the childhood name Yoshisaburō. From a young age, he assisted in his family's pattern design work, which sharpened his innate mastery of color and textile motifs that would permeate his later prints. At around twelve years old, his prodigious drawing skills drew the attention of the renowned Utag...