The figures in The Floating World indicate the new direction Japanese art was about to take over the next two centuries, its growing emphasis on daily life.
ukiyo-e
Posted inArt
In Edo Japan, Artists Captured Whales Like Never Before
The whaling industry was an important economic force in both the United States and Japan, but each society captured the subject matter very differently in art.
Posted inArt
The Hidden History of Wakashu, Edo-Era Japan’s “Third Gender”
An eye-opening exhibition at Japan Society closely examines representations of wakashu in woodblock prints from the collection of the Royal Ontario Museum.
Posted inArt
Nothing Is Off-Limits in Hirokage’s Humorous Ukiyo-e Prints
Utagawa Hirokage has a special humor, which, though at times edging on corny, is often sly and even tinged with eroticism.
Posted inFilm
An Animated Glimpse of Hokusai’s Life Through His Daughter’s Eyes
A new animated biopic offers insight into the career and work of Hokusai through the life of his daughter, a fellow artist in Edo-era Japan.
Posted inNews
Have Hokusai, Will Travel: Japan’s New Passports Feature Ukiyo-E Master’s Prints
Japanese citizens are set to receive new passports, and they will salute Katsushika Hokusai, the renowned ukiyo-e printmaker and painter.
Posted inArt
Intricate, Beautiful, Raunchy: Japan Embraces Its Ancient Erotic Print Tradition
Known as shunga (“spring pictures”), these highly erotic sexual scenes comprise a genre of their own, and an exhibition devoted entirely to them has opened for the first time in their country of origin.
Posted inArt
Mesmerizing GIFs of Japan’s Floating World
Centuries-old Japanese ukiyo-e have received a delightful update, transformed into animated scenes that sometimes include surprising, modern imagery.
Posted inOpinion
The Literal Floating World of Video Games in Ukiyo-E Art
OAKLAND, California — Ukiyo-e Heroes, a new series by American artists Jed Henry and Dave Bull, continues the ukiyo-e form with video game characters.