The floating world of Ukiyo-e.. Shadows, dreams, and substance

The stunningly beautiful and richly colored Japanese wood-block prints that represent the art form of Ukiyo-e first flourished in seventeenth century Edo (now Tokyo) and continue to captivate international audiences today. The art of Ukiyo-e ("pictures of the floating world") is newly examined in this elegant book, which showcases a never-before-published treasure trove of Japanese prints, drawings, and books from the collection of the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. The 160 compelling color images illustrated here-known masterpieces, very unusual prints and original sketches, and newly discovered masterworks-depict an incredible diversity of subjects, ranging from theatrical scenes and landscapes to portraits of actors, courtesans, and beautiful women. Works by great masters such as Hokusai, Hiroshige, and Kunisada are seen, including rare prints from Hokusai's series A Hundred Ghost Stories and images from a water- color album by Hiroshige as well as prints from some of his most famous series, including One Hundred Views of Edo. Also illustrated are nineteenth-century, Yokohama prints, examples of Western Japonisme by artists such as Mary Cassatt and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, and works by modern Japanese masters. Chosen for their significance and rarity, the books and prints in The Floating World Ukiyo-e are also visually striking and fresh in color, due in part to the fact that this collection has never before been exhibited and has rarely been handled. The text conveys new scholarship about the art form of Ukiyo-e, in essays by several eminent scholars and an unusually comprehensive bibliography.