Narumi: Shops Selling the Famous Tie-dyed Fabric (Narumi, meisan shibori mise)—No. 41, from the series "Fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido (Tokaido gojusan tsugi)," also known as the Reisho Tokaido
c. 1847/52
Medium
Color woodblock print; oban
Dimensions
25.7 × 38.2 cm (10 1/8 × 15 1/16 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
18324
Art Historical Context
In Utagawa Hiroshige captivating woodblock print *Narumi: Shops Selling Famous Tie-dyed Fabric No. 41 from renowned series *Fifty-three of the Tokaido* (c. 1847–52), visitors glimpse a bustling scene at the 41st station along Japan's historic Tokaido road. vital route connected Edo (modern Tokyo) to Kyoto during the Edo period (1603–1868), serving samurai, merchants, and pilgrims Hiroshige, a master of the ukiyo-e ("pictures of the floating world") school, immortalized these post towns, blending everyday life with poetic landscapes to evoke the journey's rhythm and regional specialties—like Na...
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...