1840
ink
paper
From the collection of Metropolitan Museum of Art
道中膝栗毛 京都の町|Street in Kyoto is a 1840 ink by Utagawa Hiroshige, a Romanticism work, depicting Ladder, held at Metropolitan Museum of Art.
This woodblock print shows a group of people carrying a long pole with bundles strapped to it. One person is balancing on the pole while others hold it steady. In the background, a mountain rises with a small village or temple at its base, and a few trees line the horizon. The scene is drawn in bold lines with flat colors and some text along the top and sides. The artist used a technique called *cross-hatching*—tiny crisscrossed lines—to create shadows and depth, especially on the mountain. This print was made in Japan around 1840, showing everyday life in Kyoto. Next, check out cross-hatching to see how artists use simple lines to make complex textures.
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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