Nihon Bridge in Snow (Nihonbashi setchu), from the series "Famous Places in the Eastern Capital (Toto meisho)"
c. 1842/44
Medium
Color woodblock print; oban
Dimensions
23.5 × 37.5 cm (9 1/4 × 14 3/4 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
33924
Art Historical Context
In the snowy hush of Edo (modern-day Tokyo), Utagawa Hiroige captures the iconic Nihonbashi bridge in his color woodblock print *Nihonbashi setchu* (Nihon Bridge in Snow), from the series *Toto meisho* (Famous Places in the Capital), created around 1842–44. As a master of ukiyo—the "pictures of the floating world"—Hiroshige landscape prints with his poetic sensitivity to nature and urban life. This oban print (23.5 × 37.5 cm) depicts the bustling bridge, a vital commercial hub linking merchants and travelers, blanketed in winter's gentle snowfall. Hiroshige's genius shines in his innovative u...
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...