Man Crossing a Bridge as the Sun Rises, from an untitled edition (without poetry) of the illustrations for the series "Five Prints of Mount Fuji (Fuji goban no uchi)"
c. 1830
Medium
Color woodblock print; shikishiban, surimono
Dimensions
21.3 × 17.8 cm (8 7/16 × 7 1/16 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
34586
Art Historical Context
In the serene glow of dawn, Utagawa Kuniyoshi a lone figure crossing a bridge in *Man Crossing a Bridge as Sun Rises*, part of his untitled edition (without poetry) from the series *Five Prints Mount Fuji (Fuji goban no u)*, created around 1830. This compact color woodblock print, measuring just 21.3 × 17.8 cm in the shikishiban () format typical of luxurious surimono, showcases Kuniyoshi's mastery ukiyo-e, the "pictures of the floating world" that celebrated Japan's everyday beauty and landscapes during the Edo period. Kuniyoshi, a prolific artist famed for dynamic warrior scenes and whimsic...
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...