Descending Geese at Katada (Katada rakugan), from the series "Eight Views of Omi (Omi hakkei no uchi)"
c. 1834
Medium
Color woodblock print; oban
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
13207
Art Historical Context
In the serene "Descending Geese at Kat (Katada rakugan Utagawa Hiroshige a poetic autumn moment from his early series *Eight Views ofmi (Omi hakkei no uchi)*, around 1834. This color woodblock print, in the popular oban format (roughly 10 x 14 inches), depicts flocks of wild geese descending over Lake Biwa in Omi Province (modern-day Shiga Prefecture) at dusk. Hiroshige, a master of ukiyo-e tradition—"pictures of the floating world"—rew inspiration from classical Chinese landscape motifs, adapting the iconic "Eight Views" theme to celebrate Japan's natural beauty and seasonal ephemera. Hirosh...
About the Artist
Utagawa Hiroshige · 1826–1869
Utagawa Hiroshige (1797–1858), born Andō Tokutarō, was the last great master of Japanese ukiyo-e woodblock printmaking and one of the most influential landscape artists in history. Born in Edo (modern Tokyo) into a low-ranking samurai family serving as fire wardens, Hiroshige transformed landscape printmaking into a poetic meditation on nature, weather, and everyday life. His revolutionary approac...