Famous Views of the 60-odd Provinces: #9 The Tennô Festival at Tsushima in Owari Province
Utagawa Hiroshige
Description
These two works are examples of Hiroshige’s advanced printing techniques. In the Tennô Festival he has used bokashi, a technique for creating subtle gradations of color, in the rendering of the water of the Tenno River, along which the festive,
lantern-covered boats float. The technique is also used in the gradually lightening skyline.
From Spring/Summer 2015 Gallery Rotation
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This series of prints, which depicts the sixty-eight provinces in Japan, is known for Hiroshige’s use of bokashi, a printing technique used to create color gradation.The artist’s expert command of bokashi allows for gentle changes in gradation, adding texture to sea waves and depth to night skies. Because this series was so successful, subsequent editions were printed hastily to meet popular demand. Subtle changes in color were modified to simpler bands, as can be seen along the upper edge of the dark sky in this scene. Thin white strips also appear next to cartouches, either where printing blocks shrunk or were not aligned with care to create a seamless match.
Although this would seem to be one of the later editions, the Tennô Shrine Festival is portrayed with vibrant energy. Bright lanterns hang from the boats and create a sharp contrast against the evening sky, while in the background teahouses set up along the river for the event give off a gentle glow, beckoning to the celebrating villagers.
exhibited summer 2010
Subject Matter:
The series Rokujuhoshu meisho zue depicts a famous place from each of the 68 provinces and the capital, Edo. Each of the 69 prints in this series, and the contents page, is a vertical composition.
In Tsushima, Aichi Province, on June 14th and 15th a festival is held, called Tenno Matsuri. Teahouses like the ones seen in this print would have been set up along the riverbank for the occasion in honor of the deity Gozu Tenno. This piece depicts boats decorated with lanterns, which would normally have close to 400 paper lanterns, decorating the evening sky and festivities. This particular arrangement is based off of the 1844 illustration "rokugatsu jyuyon nichi yuu" by Odagiri Shunko, from Owari Meisho Zue.
Physical Description:
This piece depicts boats decorated with lanterns, the evening sky and festivities. The shore is lined with teahouses set up for the event. The title for the print is located in the upper right corner in a red box.
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