| Hiroshige: Undoubtedly, the two greatest masters of Japanese landscape art are Hiroshige and Hokusai. Hiroshige --perhaps the most lyrical landscape artist of any time -- was born into a low ranking samurai family in the capital city of Edo. He became a pupil of Toyohiro at the age of fifteen and also studied the art of the Utagawa School. He started his career as a book illustrator and then turned to portrayals of beautiful women. It wasnt until seeing Hokusais Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji that Hiroshige turned almost exclusively to his famous landscape art.
As Hokusais art is forever linked with the landscape of Mt. Fuji, Hiroshiges art will always be best remembered for his scenes along the Tokaido Road. This was the 490 kilometer route that joined the two great capitals of Kyoto and Edo (Tokyo), and formed a sacred pilgrimage of fifty-three stages or places for all who traveled it. Hiroshiges first series of views of the fifty-three Stations of the Tokaido was published in 1834. During the following years this great artist produced many amazing woodcuts of views in and around Edo, Osaka, Ohmi and Kyoto. Yet, almost until his death, he kept returning to the spiritual landscape scenes of the Tokaido Road. |
