Picking Clams
ca. 1791
Medium
Triptych of woodblock prints; ink and color on paper
Dimensions
15 5/8 x 30 5/8 in. (39.7 x 77.8 cm)
Classification
Prints
Culture & Period
Japan · Edo period (1615–1868)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Rogers Fund, 1914
Accession Number
JP204
Tags
Art Historical Context
**Picking Clams** is a vibrant triptych woodblock print Utagawa Toyok I, created around 1791 during Japan's Edo period (16151868). This panoramic scene, measuring 15⅝ × 30⅝ inches, unfolds across three sheets of paper, capturing men and women engaged in the leisurely pursuit of clam picking along a coastal shore. Boats dot the water, and figures puff on pipes amid the relaxed atmosphere, evoking the everyday joys of rural life. Toyokuni I, a founding master of the influential Utagawa school, excelled in ukiyo-e—"pictures of the floating world"—which celebrated fleeting pleasures like nature o...
About the Artist
Utagawa Toyokuni I · 1777–1835
Japanese, 1777–1835