If you were to give an insider’s tour of your city or hometown, what would it entail? Which places would you include?
In Utagawa Hiroshige’s 100 Famous Views of Edo, the artist takes us on a personal tour of 19th-century Tokyo (then Edo). From lumberyards to restaurants to local waterfalls, through all the seasons, Hiroshige invites us into his intimate notions of home—and encourages us to consider our relationship with our own.
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For this episode of Hands-On, Sato Yamamoto walks us through the essential steps that go into woodblock printmaking.
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How would you portray your city?
Your favorite spot? Your secret hideaway? The bookstore where your favorite scene in a movie played out, or the place where you met the love of your life?
Make a map, draw a picture, compose a song, create a recipe, or type out a few words—and share them with us!
Reader, meet Niles Luther—the Brooklyn Museum’s composer in residence. In conjunction with Hiroshige’s 100 Famous Views of Edo (feat. Takashi Murakami), he composed pieces that respond to three of Hiroshige’s prints. (You can hear them by downloading the free Bloomberg Connects app.)
Brooklyn Museum
200 Eastern Parkway
Brooklyn, NY 11238
From the top: Utagawa Hiroshige. Suido Bridge and Surugadai, no. 48 from 100 Famous Views of Edo, 5th month of 1857. Woodblock print. Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Anna Ferris. (Photo: Brooklyn Museum); Utagawa Hiroshige. View of Nihonbashi Tōri 1-chōme, no. 44 from 100 Famous Views of Edo, 8th month of 1858. Woodblock print. Brooklyn Museum; Gift of Anna Ferris. (Photo: Brooklyn Museum); Utagawa Hiroshige. Silk-Goods Lane, Odenma-cho, no. 74 from 100 Famous Views of Edo, 7th month of 1858. Woodblock print. Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Anna Ferris. (Photo: Brooklyn Museum); Utagawa Hiroshige. Fireworks at Ryogoku, no. 98 from 100 Famous Views of Edo, 8th month of 1858. Woodblock print. Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Anna Ferris. (Photo: Brooklyn Museum); Utagawa Hiroshige. Suijin Shrine and Massaki on the Sumida River (Sumidagawa Suijin no Mori Massaki), No. 35 from One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, 8th month of 1856. Woodblock print. Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Anna Ferris (Photo: Brooklyn Museum); Utagawa Hiroshige. New Year’s Eve Foxfires at the Changing Tree, Oji, no. 118 from 100 Famous Views of Edo, 9th month of 1857. Woodblock print. Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Anna Ferris. (Photo: Brooklyn Museum); Niles Luther plays the cello at a recording session, March 13, 2024. (Photo: Kenneth Sousie)
Hiroshige’s 100 Famous Views of Edo (feat. Takashi Murakami) is organized by Joan Cummins, Lisa and Bernard Selz Senior Curator, Asian Art, Brooklyn Museum.
