Featured Prints

Yosai Nobukazu:
Fireworks viewing on a boat in the Sumida River

A glorious night of sightseeing, music and sake

With winter gripping New York, Tokyo and, to a lesser extent, Guangzhou (although to us Cantonese people it’s quite cold out), I thought I’d warm everyone up with this summer scene. It’s joyous and colorful and with the fireworks it seems like a good print to celebrate the New Year.

Yosai Nobukazu was a relatively minor Meiji print designer, a student of Chikanobu, whose best-known works are prints of the Sino-Japanese and Russo-Japanese Wars, especially the savage battles at sea. He was born in 1872 and would live nearly halfway into the 20th Century before dying in 1944, just as World War II neared its horrific end for Japan.

But this triptych (click in the image to see the whole thing) could not be any different than those violent scenes. Printed in 1892, nearly 30 years into the Meiji-era, it depicts several colorfully dressed beauties and a young girl on a yakatabune, a pleasure boat of the kind we’ve seen in quite a few other prints, including those by Chikanobu and Hiroshige.

These low-slung craft with sliding paper screens allowed cooling sea breezes to bring relief at the height of summer, although they must have been freezing in winter, where they were also used, as in this print. You can still go on a touristy one in Tokyo today. Interestingly, they were reserved for the exclusive use of the upper classes until the late Edo period.

  • The idea was the same then as it is now: rent one, and head out on the Sumida River – as depicted here – while enjoying the scenery, sake, good food and beautiful music.

    And what fun these ladies are having. One elegantly waves her beautifully rendered fan, one adjusts her hairpin, one cleans her sake cup in the water (you might not want to do that today), while three more plainly dressed women play music on a koto, flute and samisen. The young girl admires the spectacular view. On the shore, restaurants lined with red lanterns are packed with revelers.

    Japan was well on the way to westernization at the time this design was published, but like my previous featured print – Hasui’s Zozoji Temple in Shiba -- this is somewhat of a nostalgic memory of Edo times.

    But look closely and you can see two signs of modernity. To the left, at the foot of the Ryogoku Bridge’s span, next to a fire tower, you can see a single telephone pole. And to the right – way, way to the right – you can see in the hazy distance what appears to be a geometrically precise smokestack, a sign of Japan’s burgeoning new industry.

    But all that is far away out on this lovely boat on this lovely evening. Who knows if the beauties, the girl and the boatman even notice these things, as the little wooden craft is maneuvered to get the passengers the best view of the fireworks above.

    This print is in great condition. Please let me know if you have any questions.

    Sharon

Yosai Nobukazu:
Fireworks viewing on a boat in the Sumida River

A glorious night of sightseeing, music and sake

With winter gripping New York, Tokyo and, to a lesser extent, Guangzhou (although to us Cantonese people it’s quite cold out), I thought I’d warm everyone up with this summer scene. It’s joyous and colorful and with the fireworks it seems like a good print to celebrate the New Year.

Yosai Nobukazu was a relatively minor Meiji print designer, a student of Chikanobu, whose best-known works are prints of the Sino-Japanese and Russo-Japanese Wars, especially the savage battles at sea. He was born in 1872 and would live nearly halfway into the 20th Century before dying in 1944, just as World War II neared its horrific end for Japan.

But this triptych (click in the image to see the whole thing) could not be any different than those violent scenes. Printed in 1892, nearly 30 years into the Meiji-era, it depicts several colorfully dressed beauties and a young girl on a yakatabune, a pleasure boat of the kind we’ve seen in quite a few other prints, including those by Chikanobu and Hiroshige.

These low-slung craft with sliding paper screens allowed cooling sea breezes to bring relief at the height of summer, although they must have been freezing in winter, where they were also used, as in this print. You can still go on a touristy one in Tokyo today. Interestingly, they were reserved for the exclusive use of the upper classes until the late Edo period.

  • The idea was the same then as it is now: rent one, and head out on the Sumida River – as depicted here – while enjoying the scenery, sake, good food and beautiful music.

    And what fun these ladies are having. One elegantly waves her beautifully rendered fan, one adjusts her hairpin, one cleans her sake cup in the water (you might not want to do that today), while three more plainly dressed women play music on a koto, flute and samisen. The young girl admires the spectacular view. On the shore, restaurants lined with red lanterns are packed with revelers.

    Japan was well on the way to westernization at the time this design was published, but like my previous featured print – Hasui’s Zozoji Temple in Shiba -- this is somewhat of a nostalgic memory of Edo times.

    But look closely and you can see two signs of modernity. To the left, at the foot of the Ryogoku Bridge’s span, next to a fire tower, you can see a single telephone pole. And to the right – way, way to the right – you can see in the hazy distance what appears to be a geometrically precise smokestack, a sign of Japan’s burgeoning new industry.

    But all that is far away out on this lovely boat on this lovely evening. Who knows if the beauties, the girl and the boatman even notice these things, as the little wooden craft is maneuvered to get the passengers the best view of the fireworks above.

    This print is in great condition. Please let me know if you have any questions.

    Sharon