1916
ink
paper
From the collection of Metropolitan Museum of Art
東海道五十三次 御油|Goyu, from the series The Fifty-three Stations of the Tōkaidō Road is a 1916 ink by Utagawa Hiroshige, depicting Bridge, held at Metropolitan Museum of Art.
This print shows a group of people carrying heavy loads across a rickety bridge over water. The bridge is narrow, with people stepping carefully in a line. On one side, there’s a big tree with long, drooping branches, and behind it, a cluster of simple houses with thatched roofs. The sky is pale, and the colors are bright but flat, like a storybook scene. Notice how the people’s faces are blurred—it’s not about their identities, but their teamwork. The text along the side is in Japanese, hinting this is part of a famous travel series. Look up Utagawa Hiroshige to see more prints like this.
Utagawa Hiroshige (歌川 広重) or Andō Hiroshige (安藤 広重), born Andō Tokutarō (安藤 徳太郎; 1797 – 12 October 1858), was a Japanese ukiyo-e artist, considered the last great master of that tradition.
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