Shimada, from the series "Fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido (Tokaido gojusan tsugi)," also known as the Tokaido with Poem (Kyoka iri Tokaido)
c. 1837/42
Medium
Color woodblock print; chuban
Dimensions
17.1 × 22.8 cm (6 11/16 × 8 15/16 in.)
Classification
woodblock print
Department
Arts of Asia
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
4351
Art Historical Context
Utagawa Hiroshige's *Shimada*, from the renowned series *Fifty-three Stations the Tōkaidō (Tōkaidō Gojūsan-tsugi)*—also called *Tōkaidō with Poem (Kyōka iri Tōkaidō)*—captures a moment along Japan's historic coastal highway connecting Edo (modern Tokyo) to Kyoto. Created around 1837–42, this chuban-sized color woodblock print (17.1 × 22.8 cm) depicts Shimada station, one of 53 official post towns bustling with travelers during the Edo period (1603–1868). Hiroshige, a master of the ukiyo-e ("pictures of the floating world") school, infused the scene with poetic kyōka verses, blending visual art...
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...