Utagawa Hiroshige (1797 – 1858), born Andō Hiroshige, was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist. He was born in Edo, modern Tokyo, and is seen as one of the greatest and last master of the ukiyo-e tradition.
He studied painting at the Utagawa School, under the tutoring of the masters Toyokuni and Toyohiro.
Hiroshige produced thousands of prints around landscapes, flora and fauna, which set him apart on a genre that typically represented women, actors and scenes from the urban life of the Edo's period. His creations denote a poetic and ambient. His most known series remain: Famous Views of the Eastern Capital (1831), The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō (1833), The Sixty-nine Stations of the Kisokaidō (1834-1842), One Hundred Famous Views of Edo (1856–59). All images below are selected from these collections.
Tōkaidō was the main travel and transport artery of old Japan, and inspired the artist sketches during his own journey on the road. The success met for the creation "The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō" made Hiroshige replicate around 30 versions of it, all varying in size, wood surface and composition.
The influence of the artist on Western painting cannot be understated. In the mid 19th century, the opening of Japan to international trade brings ukiyo-e prints in large volume to Europe. From the Impressionists like Monet, Cézanne or Whistler, to the Russian art movement Mir iskusstva, Hiroshige became a lasting inspiration in the world of landscape painting.
Plum Park at Kameido
1857
Ashida, from Sixty-nine Stations on the Kisokaido Highway
1835-38
Pine of Success and Oumayagashi, Asakusa River
1856
Men poling boats past a bank with willows
1835-37
View of late spring at Massaki, Famous Views of the Eastern Capital
1831
Travellers surprised by sudden rain
1833-34
Evening view of a temple in the hills